Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake

Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake

Much to my disappointment, we haven’t had a lot of snow here this winter. So when I woke up to five inches of snow, I loaded Aida into the car, picked up some coffee, and went to a nearby park to enjoy the calm and quiet.

Winter

Aida

Orange and chocolate are one of my favorite combinations. Ever since I had de Beukelaer refreshment sticks when I was a kid, I’ve loved the two flavors together.

Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake

Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake

This is a buttery pound-cake-like cake, soaked in orange syrup to keep it moist, and then drenched in chocolate ganache. I’ve been wanting to make this cake for years and now that I have I could kick myself for procrastinating so long. Mike really liked it too.

Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake

Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake

 

Orange Chocolate Chunk Cake

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
 
If you don’t have extra-large eggs on hand or don’t want to buy them just for this, 5 large eggs can be substituted.
 
Cake 
1/2 pound unsalted butter at room temperature
2 cups sugar
4 extra-large eggs at room temperature
1/4 cup grated orange zest (from 4 large oranges)
3 cups all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
3/4 cup buttermilk at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups good semisweet chocolate chunks
 
Syrup
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
 
Ganache
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon instant coffee granules (optional) 
 

Pre-heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and flour a 10-inch Bundt pan.

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the orange zest.

Sift together 3 cups flour, the baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. In another bowl, combine the orange juice, buttermilk, and vanilla. Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the creamed butter, beginning and ending with the flour. Toss the chocolate chunks with 2 tablespoons flour and add to the batter. Pour into the pan, smooth the top, and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a cake tester comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the syrup. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, cook the sugar with the orange juice until the sugar dissolves. Remove the cake from the pan, set it on a rack over a tray, and spoon the orange syrup over the cake. Allow the cake to cool completely.

For the ganache, melt the chocolate, heavy cream, and coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally. Drizzle over the top of the cake. I used a little extra cream to adjust the consistency of the ganache to flow a little easier.


Comments

  1. Lynn | The Road to Honey says

    I can see why Mike liked this cake. . .it looks very decadent. From the pictures it looks like you had a magical day in the park enjoying the long overdue winter wonderland.

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