FRONT BURNER: Orange-Almond Cake shines on drab days - NWAOnline

It's been a dark and gloomy January. Wet and warm and, if I'm being honest, a bit depressing. The handful of days the sun has been out, I've been stuck in the office or otherwise obligated to be indoors.

Most winters the short days are a small price to pay for the crisp air, frost-kissed mornings and the chance of snow.

But this winter has been all gloom and rain and fog.

Last week, as the fog descended upon my house, making the floor and brick piers of my porch appear to sweat, I knew any sunshine in my foreseeable future would have to be of my own making.

So I headed to the kitchen.

This cake is a bite of sunshine. Perfect for perking up a dreary day.

Freshly grated clementine zest gives the almond cake a bright, citrusy flavor. The cake gets most of its flavor and structure from almond flour, with just a touch of wheat flour. It can also be made gluten-free by swapping in gluten-free all-purpose flour without any additional adjustments.

Orange-Almond Cake

10 tablespoons butter, softened

¾ cup granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling

Finely grated zest of 1 clementine, tangerine or mandarin orange (I used a Microplane rasp-style grater)

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

1 cup almond flour/meal

¼ cup all-purpose flour (gluten-free flour works well)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottom of an 8-inch cake pan with a round of parchment paper. (A springform pan works well.)

In a mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar and clementine zest with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract, and then the eggs one at a time, beating well between each addition. Slowly mix in the flours and blend well.

Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown.

Sprinkle about 1 teaspoon sugar over warm cake and let cool completely before serving.

Cake will keep, covered, at room temperature for about 3 days.

Makes about 8 servings.

Nutrition information: Each serving (using data from fdc.nal.usda.gov) contains approximately 365 calories, 5 g protein, 22 g fat, 37 g carbohydrate, 113 mg sodium and 1 g fiber.

Food on 01/22/2020

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