Moist - emphasis on moist - Orange Poppy Seed Cake

I still haven't got around to explaining the purpose of this blog.... bear with me. Perhaps if you read and see my madcap way of cooking, it'll dawn on you.  Nobody has to be a good cook in order to cook

I love this cake, but although it takes minutes to slap together, the "boiling oranges" bit can take a fair whack of time (and the 'boiled orange' is where we get the moistness of this cake - you can choose not to, but you'll just have an orange poppy seed cake then, not a moist orange poppy seed cake).  

But I just found out I can microwave the oranges!!!  Never one to shirk a good nuclear blast, I currently have my oranges in the microwave for 8 minutes (that's a long time to be nuked).  

HOW TO MAKE THE CAKE 

I turned the oven on.  You know - the usual moderate oven thingy

170deg C/350F.    

I also readied my cake tin.  I have recently upgraded from my tiny little, rusty-round-the-edges cake tin, to a high-top spring form pan.  THIS IN ITSELF TRANSFORMS YOU INTO A COOK WHO KNOWS WHAT THEY'RE DOING.  The cake tin needs to be oiled/buttered OR... my personal favourite: spray the crap out of it with cooking oil spray - IT DOESN'T MATTER which oil.  It's just to stop it sticking.  You can, if you want (and it always looks good) cut out a circle of baking paper the same size as the bottom of your cake tin.  Put it in the tin - no point cutting it out and putting it anywhere else.  It too will aid in the smooth transition from tin to cake cooling rack after it's holiday in the tropics of the oven. 

Don't worry yourself over your cutting out abilities.  I have never had a cake complain.

The actual cake recipe:

2 oranges – boiled twice with fresh water for 15 minutes OR microwave as below.  Then roughly chopped, skin & all (boiling it twice with fresh water takes the acid taste away - which will be interesting to see if the microwave version can eliminate that taste..)  185g butter, melted or 1 cup of vegetable oil  3 eggs  1 cup castor sugar  1 ½ cups self-raising flour - it doesn't matter if it's Gluten Free or 'normal'  2 Tablespoons poppy seeds

Nuking the Oranges:

First, I washed then I scrubbed the oranges with a brand new scouring pad that will now be used only for scrubbing food.

Then I cut them into quarters (cutting off the little bit where the stem comes out) and placed them on a dinner plate, covered them with a glass lid and zapped them on high for 8 minutes.  I don't use the microwave often, and hence, don't have authentic microwave cooking paraphernalia.

It must have worked because there is a citrus aroma in my kitchen, and when I took them out, they felt the same as the 2 hour cook-a-thon I normally do.  Careful! They're HOT.

Give it a minute, then transfer the oranges (juice and all) into a Food Processor*.  Go for it - turn that thing on!! However long it takes your fancy, but don't stop until it's a sloppy mixed up mess.

Now is the easy peasey part:  The rest of the cake mix

Put the slop into a big mixing bowl, add the eggs, oil/butter and castor sugar**.

Mix it all together - let them have a good time! 

Then add the flour*** and poppy seeds.  

Do the hokey pokey, get it all together, make sure it's a good happy mix.  Then gently slop it into the prepared tin 

the timer is set for 45 minutes, but Bluey will sit and watch just to be sure

Say goodbye to the old watery mix and marvel at the wonders of chemistry as the heat does it's thing to the gooey ingredients and transforms them over about 45 minutes into this new and wondrous creation:

[insert picture of finished cake when done]

[will ask for feedback from God Squad meeting tonight]

* I only got a food processor this Christmas - five months ago.  My previous food processor was handed to my kids when they left home 12 years ago.  Though I missed it, I couldn't bring myself to replace it.  When recipes asked for things to be processed by a food processor.... I processed them BY HAND.  It can be done - the end result is not often finely done, but done it is!! (Google : how to "X" without a food processor/kitchen wizz/ whatever... something will come up)

http://www.wikihow.com/Cook-Without-a-Food-Processor

** I like to have castor sugar around, it makes a difference, but not a difference that would destroy the end result should you use a) less sugar and/or b) ANY sugar.  You will note, I have opted for raw sugar because I am a rebel without a recipe ♥

*** I didn't realise till I got to this point that the only SR Flour I had was Gluten Free (mostly rice flour).  It may cook a bit quicker, but I really don't know.  I used it instead of making a big song and dance about how nothing goes right for me...  The point of this blog is to keep going until you have something edible in front of you.