CLEMENTINE & ALMOND BUTTER CAKE

There is nothing light and airy about this butter cake.  It is rich, dense and buttery giving it a beautiful moist texture.  I can't imagine them ever drying out but to be honest they are never around long enough to find out.  I usually bake mine as small individual cakes so that I can freeze them but you could use a loaf tin or a normal cake tin.  You would just need to increase the cooking time to about 55 - 60 minutes.

I was in two minds about whether to blog this recipe - not because it doesn't taste good but because I couldn't think how to make them look good in the pictures.  For me this is the hardest part of blogging as I am neither a photographer nor a food stylist.  Anyway - I decided that that wasn't a good enough reason to not share this recipe - so here are my very unglamourous but tasty clementine and almond cakes.

CLEMENTINE & ALMOND BUTTER CAKE

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Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 30 minutes

Total time: 50 minutes

Yield: 8 large muffins

Ingredients

• 2 clementines
• 175g butter, softened
• 175g caster sugar
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 175g self-raising flour
• 3 tblsp ground almonds
• 3 tblsp single cream

      Glaze and topping

• juice from 2 clementines
• 2 tblsp caster sugar

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 180° C (350° F).
2. Prepare muffin tin or if using a cake tin, grease and line the base with baking parchment. An 18cm/7 inch round tin is about right.
3. Using a fine grater, grate the rind from the two clementines and add to the caster sugar.
4. If you want to intensify the orange flavour a bit more - you can whizz the sugar and zest a couple of times in a food processor to release the oils but no harm done if you miss this step.
5. In a bowl, cream together the butter, sugar and clementine rind until pale and fluffy.
6. Gradually add the beaten eggs to the mixture, beating well after each addition.
7. Gently fold in the self-raising flour, followed by the ground almonds and the cream.
8. Spoon the mixture into the muffin cases or prepared tin.
9. Bake for 30 minutes (muffin size) or 55 - 60 minutes for a large cake, or until a fine skewer comes out clean.
10. Leave to cool slightly.
11. Meanwhile, make the glaze.
12. Put the clementine juice into a small saucepan with the caster sugar.
13. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes.
14. Brush the glaze over the cakes until it has been fully absorbed.

  
Written by : Angela Darroch