Elan’s Everyday Orange Cake

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Elan’s Orange Cake

Our in-town family (13 of us!) gathered this February to celebrate January and February birthdays.  Honestly, it was just an excuse to get together for dinner!  I was about to leave town but hosted the meal and did most of the food prep. That said my kids always offer to bring whatever I need.

I decided to make a “new” recipe as a birthday cake , using a recipe for an orange coconut cake (coconut optional if you’re not a coconut fan). The 12-cup bundt pan I used was really too large, and next time I will make it in a 10-cup pan.  I also made my brownies for those of us who are chocoholics.

The kids went bonkers for the cake, asking for seconds and even thirds.  I served it with fresh raspberries and would absolutely make this again.  I like bundt cakes because it takes very little effort for them to look fancy… and fancy is not my strong suit.  I love food to be appealing and nicely presented, but I move fast and don’t have the time to fuss with fancy icing, piping decorations, etc.  

Simply Delicious!

This is the cake I made, which originally came from Sivan’s Kitchen.  I did change a few things and added missing instructions.  Note that there is instant vanilla pudding mix in here, something I very rarely use.  Having said that, the cake can be whisked together quickly, and the vanilla pudding kept the cake moist for a few days.

I named this cake for my soon-to-be-7-year-old grandson Elan, Jakey Boy’s oldest.  He ate three pieces, and I promised to make this for his April birthday.

Elan’s Everyday Orange Cake

Cake Ingredients

• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup avocado oil or neutral oil of your choice
• 1 cup fresh-squeezed orange juice (yes, it has to be fresh-squeezed)
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• 3.4 oz package Jello brand instant vanilla pudding mix, sifted with the flour
• 1 Tbsp baking powder, also sifted with the flour
• ½ cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
• Zest of 1 ½ oranges

Orange Icing Ingredients 

• 2 cups sifted powdered sugar
• ¼ cup orange juice ( actually used a bit less, maybe 2 Tbsp)
• Zest of 1 large orange

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 with the rack in the center of the oven.  Spray or grease a 10-cup bundt pan well so the cake doesn’t stick!

In a large bowl, whisk eggs, then add sugar.  Keep whisking a few minutes.  Slowly add the oil and then the orange juice.

Combine the flour, vanilla pudding mix, and baking powder in a sifter and sift right on top of the liquid mixture.  Whisk until combined and then fold in the shredded coconut and orange zest.  Mix until there are no lumps.

Pour the batter into a well-greased bundt pan and tap to remove bubbles.  Bake for 30-35 minutes until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.  Cool 20 minutes in the pan on top of a rack, then gently rock the cake pan, and once it seems loose, invert onto the cake rack.  Cool completely before icing, or you can ice it the next day if you wrap the cake well overnight in foil.

Icing Instructions

Whisk together the powdered sugar and gradually add fresh orange juice until smooth.  I added less because it started to look too runny.   Keep the cake on a rack with something underneath to catch the drips (parchment paper or waxed paper or foil), and brush the icing evenly over the cake into the cracks and crevices…some of the glaze will drip onto the paper below.  Garnish with orange zest (press it in) and wrap well for up to five days.  When ready to serve, put it on a serving plate, slice it into a serving portion, and accompany it with fresh berries.

PS: I have had two requests for the recipe before posting it from people who tried my cake!