Sicilian Orange Almond Cake with Syrup

I love almonds and of course citrus fruit and that is why my Sicilian Orange Almond Cake with Syrup is irresistible.  Take it to the table anytime of the year.  It is a nice winter or summer dessert. In the summer, I like to serve it with ice cream, but during the winter I dress it with some yogurt and segments of mandarin oranges marinated in Peach Schnapps.

The aroma of citrus

Citrus is clean and aromatic. Oranges are complimentary when cooking with hot spices and they accentuate many fresh herbs making the flavour pop.  Mix oranges with cinnamon, allspice, or nutmeg and you can add to any sauce for fish or poultry. You can also use oranges in apple,poppy-seed or banana cakes.  Today my Sicilian Orange Almond Cake with Syrup combines the warmth of cinnamon and the fresh scent of oranges to bring a tasty dessert to my table.  I hope you enjoy it at your table!!

 A Slice of the best aromatic orange almond cake. 

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Sicilian Orange Almond Cake with Syrup

Oranges give this hearty almond cake aromatic flavour.  

Course Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Servings 12

Author Renata Solski

Ingredients

The Cake

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1 cup semolina flour
• 1 cup ground almonds
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• powdered sugar dusting cake
• 1 orange for zest and decorating

The Orange/Peach Syrup

• 1 cup orange juice
• 1 tbsp peach marmalade
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp peach schnapps

Instructions

The Cake

1. Set oven to 350 F.

   Prepare an 8 inch round cake pan by greasing and cutting a round of parchment to fit the bottom.  ( see video)

   Put the butter and sugar in a bowl and beat.

   Add the eggs followed by the orange juice.  

   In another bowl mix the semolina flour, ground almonds and cinnamon.

   Now put the dry ingredients into the wet and fold.

   Pour into a prepared 8 inch round cake pan.  

   Bake for 40 minutes.

   Cool for 10 minutes.

   
   

   
   

The Syrup

1. Pour orange juice into a pan and add the peach marmalade.  Stir well.

   Add the sugar and peach schnapps.

   Put the pot on the stove and bring to a boil.

   Turn the heat down to medium and cook for 5 minutes.

   Remove from heat and strain.

   Reserve 1/3 of this sauce for serving.

   
   

   
   

The Assembly

1. Poke holes in the cake with a skewer.

   Pour 2/3 of the light syrup all over the cake.  

   Dust the cake with powdered sugar.

   Decorate with orange segments.

   When serving add some more orange segments on the plate and drizzle some syrup around the plate.  

Recipe Notes

Use your reserved 1/3 cup of syrup to serve; experiment with this and be creative on the plate.