This blood orange cake is filled with the juice and zest of ripe blood oranges and topped with candied orange slices and crushed pistachios - for a deliciously moist, tangy, sweet dessert!
Juice the oranges for 1 cup of juice. Usually, three medium-sized oranges are enough for this. Zest one of the oranges.
Preheat the oven to 350ºF/180ºC.
Step 2: Mix the orange cake batter
In a large bowl, sift in the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and add the orange zest.
Add the softened butter, eggs, and the blood orange juice. Whisk for 3-4 minutes until you obtain a smooth batter.
Step 3: Bake the blood orange cake
Pour the batter into an 8-inch or 9-inch round cake tin lined with parchment paper.
Bake in the oven for between 45-50 minutes on the middle shelf. The cake is ready when you insert a toothpick in the center of the cake, and it comes out clean.If it looks like the top is browning too quickly after about 30 minutes, then cover the top with tin foil for the remaining 15-20 minutes.
Allow the cake to cool down for 5-10 minutes inside the tin before removing it and allowing it to cool entirely.
Step 4: Decorate the blood orange cake
While the cake rests, prepare the crushed pistachios either with a knife, roughly chopped, or using a food processor for a few seconds.
Once the cake is cooled, brush with a little of the candied blood orange syrup and then top with the crushed pistachio and a layer of candied blood orange slices.
How To Store
Store the leftover pistachio orange cake for between 2-3 days in an airtight container in the fridge.You could also freeze the undecorated cake for up to 2 months, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap or within an airtight container.
Video
Notes
You can adapt this into an upside-down blood orange cake easily. To do so, place a layer of overlapping candied blood orange slices on the bottom of the cake tin, pressing lightly so they stick to the pan slightly. Pour the batter over the slices and then bake in the oven. Use a toothpick to insert into the center of the cake to test if it's ready - it should come out clean with just a few crumbs. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for around 15 minutes before inverting it and releasing it from the pan.
This can also be adapted to a blood orange loaf cake. I haven't experimented with this, but I imagine it will take slightly less time in the oven.
If you want to avoid doming in the cake for any reason, then I suggest baking the cake 10ºC lower than suggested and this may help - though it will take longer to bake (325ºF instead of 350ºF).
You can use any in-season orange variety for this orange cake: Tangerines, mandarins, navel oranges, tangelos, Valencia, etc.