Orange Chocolate cake

Everyone loves chocolate cake (at least most of us do!). One thing the 2020 pandemic inadvertently made me do is to try my hands at baking since we could not get cakes from bakery shops for months.

One of the evenings we had a Chocolate Valencia Orange ice cream from Whole Foods (because this was the only flavor available online). It turns out, we loved the flavor and we thought how awesome it would be to have this flavor (Orange on top of Chocolate!) in a cake!

With some search online, got some inspiration from a bunch of recipes and whipped up this cake. It turned out to be super moist and chocolaty with just the right amount of Orange tang.

Prep Time: 30 mins; Cook Time: 30 mins

This cake is fairly simple to make. I have made this cake twice now. Once without frosting and the other time with a mocha whipped cream frosting for a friend’s midnight birthday celebration. Both variations turned out to be amazing and you can chose one or the other depending on the occasion and your mood.

Things you need

Orange Chocolate Cake

  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp orange zest
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/2 cup Buttermilk
  • 1/4 cup Oil
  • 1/2 cup fresh orange juice (slighty warmed)
  • 1/2 tsp Vanilla extract

Mocha Whipped Cream Frosting

  • 1/2 cup Heavy whipping cream (very cold)
  • 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/2 tsp instant coffee powder
  • 2 tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1/4 tsp Vanilla extract

Let’s make it

  1. Orange Chocolate Cake: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9” round cake pan with oil/butter and line the bottom with parchment paper.
  2. In a mixing bowl, sift all the dry ingredients together ( flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt).
  3. Now add in the orange zest and mix until it is combined
  4. In a separate bowl, all in the wet ingredients (egg, buttermilk, oil, orange juice, and vanilla extract) and whisk them using a hand mixer until combined
  5. Now add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture in batches. Keep stirring with the hand mixer until the batter is smooth and combined
  6. Pour the prepared batter in the prepared cake pan and tap on the countertop a few times to get rid of any air bubbles
  7. Bake the cake for 30 minutes or until it passes the toothpick test
  8. Remove the cake from oven and let it cool completely before frosting it
  9. Mocha whipped cream frosting: Combine all the ingredients for whipped cream frosting in a bowl and combine them using a hand mixer at low speed.
  10. Now increase the speed and keep whisking until a stiff peak is formed
  11. Spread the frosting over the cooled cake evenly
  12. Decorate with fresh oranges, chocolate shavings, or powdered sugar

Notes

  1. Make sure to tap the cake pan on the countertop after pouring the batter to get rid of any air bubbles
  2. You can skip the coffee in the frosting to make a simple chocolate frosting.

Do let us know if you try this cake. Would love to hear your thoughts!

~Ina