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Photograph of Chocolate and Almond Cake with Orange

Chocolate and Almond Cake with Orange

A moist almond and chocolate cake laced with orange, topped with a rich chocolate and orange ganache and toasted almonds. This beautiful cake, luscious and shiny, is deceptively easy to make and is as delicious with a cup of tea, as it is served with ice cream for dessert.

Course afternoon tea, Dessert, Morning Coffee
Keyword Almonds, cake, Chocolate, orange
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Servings 8

Ingredients

Wet ingredients:

  • 130g unsalted butter
  • grated zest of 2 oranges
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Dry ingredients:

  • 130g ground almonds
  • 130g caster sugar
  • 30g plain/all-purpose flour
  • 30g cocoa powder, sieved
  • ¼ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon fine salt

Ganache topping:

  • 25g flaked almonds
  • 150g orange flavoured chocolate – I use Terry’s Chocolate Orange
  • 75g double cream

Instructions

  1. Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.

  2. Preheat oven to fan oven 160°C /180°C/350°F/Gas 4 and grease and line a 20cm/8in round cake tin baking parchment or use a cake tin liner.

  3. Weigh the flaked almonds for the topping onto a baking sheet and cook in a preheated oven for 3 – 5 minutes, until lightly browned, and set aside.

  4. Make the cake: weigh the butter into a microwave safe bowl and melt in the microwave. Grate over the orange zest and set aside to cool. (Alternatively, melt the butter in a saucepan.)

  5. Meanwhile, weigh the ground almonds and sugar into a mixing bowl. Place a sieve over the top, zero the scales and add the flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt. Sieve over and use a balloon whisk to mix thoroughly.

  6. Add the remaining wet ingredients, the eggs and vanilla extract, to the cooled butter mix and mix well.

  7. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and fold together until mixed.

  8. Transfer into the cake tin and bake in the centre of a pre-heated oven for 45 – 50 minutes or until cooked.

  9. Leave the cake in the tin for 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool.

  10. Now make the Chocolate Orange Ganache: blitz the chocolate in a food processor until it looks like crumbs. Transfer to a heatproof bowl.

  11. Heat the cream until it steams and small bubbles appear on the surface. Do not bring it to the boil.

  12. Pour the cream over the crumbed chocolate, stir briefly, and leave it for a few minutes for the chocolate to melt. Stir after 5 minutes, it should be fully melted. But if not, blitz in the microwave in 10 second intervals, stirring well after each blitz.

  13. Pour the ganache over the cool cake, letting it drip down the sides. Scatter the almonds over the top.

  14. Serve as is with a cup of tea. This cake also makes a delicious dessert served with ice cream and/or fresh cream.

Recipe Notes

Equipment:

  • baking tray
  • Kitchen scales and measuring spoons
  • Mixing bowls and sieve
  • grater
  • Balloon whisk
  • small saucepan
  • 20cm/8in round cake tin, lined with baking parchment, or a cake tin liner

Where is this recipe from?

This recipe is adapted from the Almond and Pistachio Cake with Pears and Lemon that I posted a few months ago. That cake, in turn, was slightly adapted from a recipe from a fabulous blog I follow, called The Brick Kitchen, or on insta as @claudiabrick.

However, the idea behind the fabulous flavour combination came from a dessert I enjoyed at The Pandora Inn in Falmouth Cornwall, when I visited with Emma last June. Their signature Chocolate and Pistachio Torte with Orange Syrup and Vanilla Ice Cream was utterly addictive and I knew, immediately, that I would try and re-create it at home. For ease, I took some liberties with the recipe, but trust me, whilst this may not be a proper copycat recipe, it is still ridiculously good.