Sunshine Cake is kissed with orange juice and zest citrus - Detroit Free Press

Darlene Zimmerman Henry Ford Health System

Published 7:00 AM EST Feb 10, 2019

It's citrus season and there's no better time to enjoy oranges. Today's recipe uses both the juice and peel to infuse wonderful orange flavor into this moist, light cake.

Similar to sponge, chiffon, and angel food cakes, our Sunshine Cake is egg-leavened.
Obviously, leavening agents play a big role in baking. Without them, cakes would
resemble pancakes — flat and dense. Beating eggs whites incorporates lots of air bubbles, which helps the cake rise.

Baking powder and baking soda are common leavening agents used in baked goods.
Creaming together butter and sugar is another way to leaven. Whipping butter
incorporates small air pockets, giving baked goods volume and lift.

One advantage to using whipped egg whites is it eliminates the need for baking powder
and baking soda, which reduces the sodium content. And, unlike butter, egg whites do not contain artery-clogging saturated fat.

Take special care when using egg foam to leaven cakes. Be sure that your mixing bowl
and whisk is clean and free of any oil or fat. That means no egg yolk in the separated
whites. Separating the yolk from the egg white is easier with cold eggs.

Cover the egg whites and allow them to come to room temperature, about 20 to 30
minutes, before beating. Room temperature egg whites will whip up faster and yield a
better volume than cold eggs.

Beat egg whites until soft peaks form. When you lift the beater, the tip of the peak will
droop over. At this point it's time to gradually add the sugar. You will notice in this
recipe that some of the sugar is added during the egg white whipping process. This
creates more volume and makes the egg whites more stable.

Continue whipping until the egg whites form stiff, glossy peaks. Upon lifting the beater
there should be no drooping. When you reach this stage, immediately and very carefully
fold the whites into the batter. The whites don't have to be completely incorporated. Thin streaks of egg whites running through the batter is okay. Overmixing destroys the air bubbles you worked so hard to develop.

One last step to creating the perfect rise to your egg foam-leavened cake is placing it in a preheated oven immediately after getting it into the baking dish. The sudden blast of heat helps the cake to fully rise.

Darlene Zimmerman is a registered dietitian in Henry Ford Hospital's Heart & Vascular
Institute. For questions about today's recipe, call 313-972-1920.

Sunshine Cake

Serves: 12 / Prep time: 30 minutes / Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes (plus cake cooling time)

Vegetable oil cooking spray
3 large eggs, whites and yolks separated and saved
⅓ cup plus ½ cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons canola oil
¼ cup low-fat plain Greek yogurt
¼ cup fresh-squeezed orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon orange zest
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup white whole-wheat flour
½ cup all-purpose flour
GLAZE
½ cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon fresh-squeezed orange juice
½ teaspoon orange zest
36 fresh raspberries (about 1 cup), optional garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8- or 9-inch square baking dish with cooking spray.

To prepare batter, using an electric mixer beat egg whites to soft peaks. With mixer running, gradually add ⅓ cup sugar and beat until stiff peaks form; about 3 minutes.

In a separate bowl, beat egg yolks, remaining ½ cup sugar, oil, yogurt, orange juice, vanilla extract, orange zest, and salt. Add whole-wheat flour and all-purpose flour and mix until just combined. Using a spatula, gently fold egg white mixture into batter until just combined.

Spread batter into prepared baking dish and bake 30 to 40 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack.

While cake cools, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, stir together powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest until smooth. Once cooled, drizzle glaze over top of cake. If desired when serving, garnish each piece of cake with 3 raspberries.

Adapted from Giada De Laurentiis by Darlene Zimmerman, MS, RD for Heart Smart and tested by Susan Selasky for the Free Press Test Kitchen.

169 calories (27% from fat), 5 grams fat (1 grams sat. fat, 0 grams trans fat), 28 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams protein, 60 mg sodium, 47 mg cholesterol, 16 mg calcium, 1 grams fiber. Food exchanges: 1 ½ starch, 1 fat.