Orange Cake

Cake! I love cake. My sweet tooth practically calls out for a slice of lavender coffee cake or chocolate coconut cake when it’s time for dessert.

I make this Orange Cake when I want to channel my inner Martha Stewart. It’s a simple but sophisticated one-layer dessert with a fluffy, golden crumb and a glistening orange vanilla glaze. But it’s the vibrant orange flavors in every bite that make it a winning sweet treat.

Take it from me, the biggest cake lover I know: The melt-in-your-mouth texture and bright pops of citrus in each slice will bring a little more sunshine to anyone’s day. 

Orange Cake Ingredients

Navel oranges – It wouldn’t be an orange cake without the fresh citrus flavors and aromas, so I zested a large navel orange before squeezing out all of the juice. If you don’t have a navel orange, use mandarin oranges, blood oranges, or any other kind of orange you like.

Applesauce – The cake gets most of its moisture from plain, unsweetened applesauce. Melted coconut oil or vegetable oil will work as substitutes, but the crumb won’t be as light or delicate.

Flour – Classic all-purpose flour works perfectly.

Orange vanilla glaze – I decorated the cake with a very simple glaze made from powdered sugar, orange juice, and vanilla extract.

This list is to provide further clarification on a few of the ingredients. See recipe card below for the full ingredient list. 

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Variations

• Orange almond cake – Add 1 teaspoon of almond extract to the wet ingredients for just a kiss of almond. You could sprinkle toasted almond slices over the glaze, too!
• Gluten-free option – I haven’t tested this recipe with anything other than all-purpose flour, but a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend might work as a substitute.
• Glaze substitute – If you’d rather keep it simple, sift powdered sugar over the cake instead.

How to Make Orange Cake

Step 1: Make the orange sugar. Add the sugar and orange zest to a bowl and rub them together with your fingers until fragrant. Add the butter to the same bowl and beat with a mixer until fluffy.

Step 2: Add the wet ingredients. Next, mix the eggs, milk, orange juice, applesauce, and vanilla with the butter-sugar mixture until combined.

Step 3: Whisk dry ingredients. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a separate bowl.

Step 4: Combine. Gently stir the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined.

Step 5: Bake. Pour the cake batter into a cake pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Set it aside to cool.

Step 6: Make the glaze. Meanwhile, whisk the orange juice and vanilla together in a bowl, then whisk in the powdered sugar until you have a smooth glaze.

Step 7: Decorate and serve. Pour the glaze over the cooled cake and use a spatula to spread it evenly over the top. Slice and enjoy!

Erin’s Tips and Tricks

• Only zest the orange peel, not the white pith underneath. The pith is very bitter, and you don’t want it messing with the cake!
• Zest the orange before juicing it. It’s way easier this way, trust me.
• Room temperature ingredients are easier to incorporate into cake batters. Remember to take the eggs, butter, milk, oranges, applesauce, and any other refrigerated ingredients out of the fridge at least 30 minutes ahead of time.
• Don’t overmix the batter when combining the wet and dry mixes. To keep the cake’s delicate crumb, very gently combine the two with a wooden spoon or spatula until the flour is absorbed.
• Garnish the cake with candied orange slices, fresh mint leaves, or extra orange zest to make it feel extra fancy.

Orange Cake FAQs

Storage

Make-ahead: I like to serve this cake fresh to enjoy each moist and fluffy bite to the fullest. That said, the unglazed cake will still be a bit moist after staying covered on the kitchen counter for 1 to 3 days.

Refrigerator: The whole cake or individual slices can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. Keep in mind that it will dry out slightly as it sits.

Freezer: You can wrap the unglazed cake in plastic wrap and freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw it on the kitchen counter before pouring the glaze over top.

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If you made this recipe, be sure to leave a comment and star rating below. Thanks!