Cardamom & Tangerine Drizzle Cake

Every domestic goddess needs a good drizzle cake in her repertoire  - it's a classic and this one kicks up the everyday lemon drizzle cake into something really special. 

Deep orange sweet tangerines have just hit the shelves so I’ve decided to make a Tangerine drizzle cake this week.  If you don’t like tangerine you can use lemon instead and If you like things a bit tarter then mix ½ a lemon in with the tangerine juice in the syrup.   If I am honest this cake always tastes much better the following day.   I was tweeted earlier to ask about lime drizzle cake by Penelope's Pantry  and I can recommend that it is utterly delicious made in exactly the same way but using limes instead -  served with a cup of coffee and good gossip with a girl friend or two of course!

Preparation time 20 minutes

Cooking time 35 minutes

Serves: 8

sponge


2 Tangerines, finely grated zest


200g unsalted butter, cubed and softened


200g  caster sugar


3 medium eggs,

200g self-raising flour,

½ tsp of ground cardamom

Tangerine syrup OR Lemon syrup
Tangerine juice from 2 tangerines
5 tbs caster sugar

1 Preheat the oven to 180°C, gas mark 4. I don't use the fan oven as it dries out the sponge.

2 Grease a 20cm, round, springform cake tin and base-line with a disc of baking parchment. Place the sugar, softened butter and Tangerine zest in a mixing bowl and beat with a wooden spoon or an electric hand mixer The result should be pale in color, with a really light and fluffy texture. Putting in the tangerine zest when you cream the butter and sugar helps to release the oils in the zest, which results in a much more zesty sponge.

3 Now start adding the beaten egg, which should be at roughly the same temperature as the butter and sugar. Add it in stages, beating in after each addition. If it looks like it's going to curdle, add 1 tbsp flour. Finally, fold in the flour and cardamom. You will be left with a really thick mixture, but this is what you want for a dense sponge.

4 Spoon the mixture into your prepared tin and bake for 35–45 minutes until it is shrinking away from the side. Test it with a skewer to see if the mixture is cooked in the centre; it should come out clean or with crumbs, not with any mixture. Remove from the oven and, if it is done, prick all over with a cocktail stick about 20 times.

5 To make the tangerine syrup squeeze the juice of both into a saucepan and add 5/6 tablespoons of caster sugar.  Heat and stir for about a minute until dissolved.  Cool.  Alternatively you can mix it with icing sugar and use immediately for a more liquid drizzle.

6 Drizzle the tangerine syrup over the cake, slowly, waiting a few moments before adding more, so that it all sinks in. It should leave a crust on the cake as the juices sink in. Remove from the tin and transfer to a wire rack to cool.