Dairy-free and egg-free, this Orange Paradise Cake uses fresh citrus to create this sweet, moist and absolutely delicious cake. This crowd-pleasing cake pairs beautifully with strong coffee, tea, or dessert.
Oranges are available all year round, but during the winter months they provide sunshine and vitamin C. I have eaten a lot of oranges this season. I’m running out of these oranges. This Orange Paradise Cake is a wordplay based on his two main ingredients in this dish: Oranges and Grains of Paradise. This is the perfect winter cake and an opportunity to explore the spices native to West Africa.
What is Orange Paradise Cake?
The Orange Paradise Cake is a cake I invented that combines citrus and grains of paradise. These two ingredients work together in perfect harmony to deliver winter warmth and bright citrus freshness.
There are thousands of varieties of oranges as we know them, and the original sweet orange was the product of crossing pomelo and mandarin. These citrus fruits are historically native to Southern China/Southeast Asia, migrating along the Silk Road and spreading all over the world. Today, oranges come in all sizes and colors, from blood oranges to light pinks to bright yellows. Oranges are available year-round, but in North America, citrus season falls into the winter months as grocery stores overflow with oranges grown in California and Florida. Citrus varieties from Europe and South Africa are also accessible.
Grains of paradise (also called Aframomum melegueta) are members of the Zingiberaceae family, which includes cardamom and other types of Aframomum plants.In West Africa, melegueta peppers are sharp, sour, and spicy. Aframomum corririma (native to Tanzania) Smells like cardamom with orange/lemon notes. Ethiopian spice blends like Berbere and North African ras-el-hanout contain varieties of these aframomum. However, many people lump the two together. Gifted a bottle of “Grain of Paradise” (Coralima) from @burlapandbarrel (selling fair trade single origin spices) was the inspiration for this dish. It has a cardamom-like profile and pairs very well with citrus fruits.
What you need for this orange paradise cake
- orange: Any sweet orange variety works well. A cake made with blood oranges, caracalla, and navel oranges. A half lemon is also needed to balance the citrus sweetness.
- “Grains of Paradise / Coralima”: This is another flavor profile for this cake. These can be found at: @burlapandbarrel Or check out Ethiopian grocery stores. Feel free to use the West African variety, but it will make your cake spicier without the cardamom flavor.
- oil: This is an oil cake, which gives the cake moisture and softens it
- sugar: Add sweetness. Also, mixing sugar with zest brings out the citrus flavor.
- Blowing agent: This is an egg-free recipe, so you’ll need baking powder and baking soda to make the cake rise.
- Plant-based milk: This recipe uses soy milk for increased fat and protein content, but any plant-based milk will work. It is highly recommended because of the
- acid: Apple cider vinegar coagulates the soy milk and reacts with the baking powder to add lift to the cake.
- Applesauce: This works as an egg substitute and adds moisture to the cake
- salt: Salt helps balance and brings out the sweetness of sugar, so always add salt to sweet desserts.
how to make this cake
- peel citrus with sugar
- Sliced citrus is cooked with a little zest sugar mix and peeled citrus juice
- Solidify soy milk with acid
- mix the dry ingredients together
- mix wet ingredients
- Mix dry ingredients to make cake batter
- Line the bottom of the cake with sliced citrus that has been baked and cool with a little broth.
- add butter
- Bake at 350°F for 40 minutes or until toothpick is dry.
- Allow to cool, turn over, and drizzle a little cooking juice over the top.
- slice and enjoy
Frequently Asked Questions + Substitutions
- What can you do instead of paradise grains? You can substitute cardamom, Cloves, nutmeg and a pinch of pepper.
- Can you make this gluten free? You can swap all-purpose for 1-for-1 gluten-free baking flour. Great gluten free flour.
- Which orange do you recommend? I made it with blood orange, navel orange, and cara cara orange. they all work well. If you’re making this recipe for the first time, we recommend using regular navel oranges as they are juicy and the skin is not bitter.
- Can I use another acid instead of apple cider vinegar? Yes, any acid like vinegar or lemon juice will work
- Can I use another egg replacer? Use aquafaba (chickpea water or canned flax eggs). We do not recommend using liquid egg replacers like Just Egg. Because it is not used for baking, it is used to substitute for other functions of eggs.
Check out my other African-inspired baked goods
If you like this recipe, please leave a comment at the end of this blog post.
orange paradise cake
Dairy-free and egg-free, this Orange Paradise Cake uses fresh citrus to create this sweet, moist and absolutely delicious cake.
Serving: 8 slice
- 3 orange blood orange, navel, or caracalla work well
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1/2 lemon juice
- 1/2 cup Water
- 2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1 1/4 cup of vegetable milk soy milk or nut-based milk
- 1 1/2 teaspoon of apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon Grind of Paradise See the FAQ section for alternative information
- 1/2 cup oil’s vegetable oil or olive oil works well
- 2 tablespoon apple sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon of salt
orange base
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Peel 1 orange and mix well with the sugar until the sugar turns yellow.
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Peel the peeled oranges and additional oranges. Hold the slices firmly in place, leaving a little orange albedo (the white part between the flesh and the skin).
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Slice the peeled orange into medallions and place in a small pan
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Squeeze the last remaining orange juice
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Add 1/4 cup sugar peel mix, lemon juice, orange juice, and 1/4 cup water.
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Cook over medium-low heat for 10 minutes and cool.
cake batter
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Preheat oven to 350°F
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Mix plant milk and apple cider vinegar in a bowl and let it set for a few minutes.
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Stir in applesauce, oil, remaining zest and sugar mixture
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Gradually mix dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, grains of paradise)
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At this point the sliced orange has cooled
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In an 8-inch cake tin lined with parchment paper, layer the cooked orange slices and drizzle a little of the cooked orange syrup to fill any empty spaces.
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pour the cake batter
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Bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes until toothpicks are clean
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Let the cake cool before slicing
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Enjoy with tea or coffee
