Im going to start off by saying that I utterly adore this cake.
Light, full of fresh and zingy orange, blossom water and honey flavours.
Topped with a homemade syrup of honey and orange blossom, drizzled on when the cake is hot out the oven so the syrup seeps and sighs into all the little nooks of the cake.
This cake tastes beautiful and with some fresh whipped up cream or vanilla ice cream it is perfect, and I think a brilliant example of the island it comes from.
Fresh, inviting, homely, fragrant and above all stunningly beautiful. Once you eat this you'll always want more. Just like the island itself.
I made mine as the sheet cake pictured (because it always has people requesting slices as a cake drop off) but the recipe below makes a standard 8" round cake.
If you'd like to make a larger sheet cake as i have then simply double the recipe
Recipe makes 1 8" cake
6oz Butter (softened)
6oz Caster sugar
3 Eggs
7oz Self raising flour
1 Tablespoon milk
1 Teaspoon baking powder
4 Oranges zested and 1/2 orange of juice
1/2 Teaspoon of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon orange blossom water
For the syrup
4 tablespoons Icing sugar
2 teaspoons honey
1/4 tsp orange blossom water
100ml water
Juice 1/2 orange
1 cinnamon stick
Preheat the oven to 180-*c.
1 - Cream the sugar and butter together well, until the colour starts to lighten, if you're using an electric mixer leave it going for about 2 minutes till they go light and fluffy. then add in the milk and mix again.
2 - Zest the oranges, getting all that lovely flavour off and set aside, and juice 1/2 of one of the oranges.
3 - Whisk your eggs together with the blossom water, cinnamon, zest and juice.
4 - Add the eggs to the sugar and butter and mix well.
5 - Next sift your flour and baking powder into the mix and fold in until they're all mixed. Careful not to over-mix or you run the risk of a flat unrisen cake.
6 - Pour into a lined and greased 10 inch cake tin.
7 - Bake in the oven for approx. 25 minutes, it may need a little longer, depending on your oven, but do the skewer/knife test and as soon as it comes out clean your cake is cooked.
8 - Whilst its baking make the syrup. Put the icing sugar, honey, and blossom water, into a small pan, pour in the water and bring to a boil, stirring constantly until the sugar has dissolved. Low simmer for 5 minutes.
9 - Ladle the hot syrup carefully and evenly over the cake whilst its still warm.
Let it absorb the syrup and cool completely
This tastes delicious served warm with some Vanilla ice-cream or whipped cream!