A light and moist cake which can be served with a cup of tea or with whipped cream for a summer dessert. This is similar to my lemon drizzle cake but this time, I've used an orange and a lemon and made the crunchy icing into a citrus syrup. Obviously, if you prefer the crunch, use either fruit and follow the instructions for the lemon drizzle cake topping.
I've used a 22cm square tin but you could also use a round sandwich cake tin. Either way, butter and flour the tin or line it with greaseproof paper.
115g plain flour, sieved
115g ground almonds
1 tsp baking powder
225g unsalted butter
225g caster sugar
zest of 1 orange
zest of 1 lemon
3 large eggs
Syrup – juice of 1 lemon and 1 orange, 100g golden granulated sugar
Preheat the oven to 180ºC.
Cream the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy. Stir in the grated zest. Add the eggs one at a time alternating with a tablespoon of flour to stop it curdling and then add the remaining flour, baking powder and ground almonds. Mix thoroughly.
Spoon into your prepared cake tin and bake for 20 minutes. Stick a skewer into the middle of the cake and if it comes out clean, it's done! If not, give it another 5 minutes in the oven.
To make the syrup, juice the lemon and orange and pour into a small saucepan. Stir in the sugar and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and let the liquid reduce by about a third.
I've used a golden granulated sugar because that's what I had in the cupboard but you could also use white granulated sugar. In fact, that is probably better if you're going with the crunchy topping.
Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool slightly before piercing the sponge a few times with a skewer. Then drizzle the syrup slowly over the top and watch it soak into the cake. You may not need all of it.
Leave the cake in the tin until it has cooled completely and then cut into slices and serve.
Whipped cream or crème fraîche optional!
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