Manuka Honey Orange Blossom Cake!

December 09, 2017

For anyone looking to try something new and different as a dessert option, they should try out this Manuka honey orange blossom cake! Coming in three layers with a delicious filling to top each one, you can’t go wrong with this unusual but ultimately amazing dish.

Ingredients for Manuka Honey Orange Blossom Cake

1 orange, organic and unwaxed (ideally)
1 cup and 1 tablespoon of butter, room temperature
1 ¼ cup and 1 teaspoon of caster sugar
6 eggs
2 tablespoons of orange blossom water
3 tablespoons of vegetable oil
1 ½ cups and 4 teaspoons of flour, self-raising
1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder
1 cup and ½ teaspoon of finely ground almonds

Filling:

2 ½ cups and ½ tablespoon of ricotta cheese
1 ¼ cup and 1 teaspoon of Greek yogurt
1 tablespoon of orange blossom water
¼ cup and 2 ½ tablespoons of icing sugar

Candied oranges:

¾ cup and 4 ½ teaspoons of caster sugar
1 ¾ cups and 2 ½ tablespoons of water
2 oranges, organic and unwaxed ideally

Topping:

4 tablespoons of honeycomb, plus extra Manuka honey to drizzle
4 teaspoons of flaked almonds
Small amount of rose petals, edible

Directions for Manuka Honey Orange Blossom Cake

For the cake: To begin, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and then grease and line three 9-inch nonstick cake pans with baking paper and butter. Place one orange in a small pan, covering with water. Bring the water to boil over high heat and let boil for about 20 minutes or until soft.
Drain the water and cut the orange into quarters while also cutting out obvious pips. Blend in a blender for several minutes until fine, and then pour in a mixing bowl. Set aside to cool.
Add the sugar, orange blossom water, and butter into the blender, blending for roughly five minutes or until smooth. Crack each egg in, blending each one separately until smooth, and then add the vegetable oil to blend as well.
In a mixing bowl, sift your flour before adding the almonds and baking powder. Stir together, and then add the flour mixture into the butter mixture gradually, blending every time until it’s incorporated. Then, add your blended orange and mix.
Dividing the cake mixture between three tins, bake the cake layers between 25 and 30 minutes or until a fork comes up clean. Set the cake aside to cool once it’s out of the oven.
For the filling: Add the ricotta cheese, yogurt, orange blossom water, and icing sugar in a mixing bowl, beating together until smooth—expect the ricotta to make it slightly textured. Cover and set in the refrigerator.
For the candied oranges: Place the sugar in a nonstick frying pan on high heat, pouring in the water. Bring to boil, and then boil between 5-6 minutes until the sugar is fully dissolved. Lower the heat down to medium, and then add two oranges, cooking 15 minutes on each side. Remove the oranges from the pan and shake off excess syrup, laying the slices to cool. Set the syrup aside.
Back to the cake: Poke the top of the cake layers using a fork while they’re in the cake tins. Take the syrup and spoon it over the cakes. Let them sit for another 20 minutes before removing the cakes from the tins and placing them onto a wire rack.
To put the cake together, place one cake layer onto an available cake stand, smear on one third of the filling, and then top with the second cake layer. Add the next third of filling, top with the third cake layer, and then smear the last of the filling onto the cake. Top with the candied oranges, almonds, rose petals, and honeycomb. Drizzle with Manuka honey, serving with an additional candied orange slice per serving.