Syrupy marmalade and almond cake with apricot compote

 

If you love oranges, this Syrupy Marmalade and Almond Cake recipe by Maggie Beer in this month’s Australian Women’s Weekly could be for you.

This buttery, sweet cake is moist as the result of a liberal application of blood orange juice syrup, and the use of a whole boiled orange in the cake batter itself. You can use navel oranges if blood oranges are not available. The cake is also gluten free, as it is based on almond meal and polenta.

The apricot compote is optional, but is a nice touch.

The cake recipe is also available online here.  I followed the recipe faithfully, but topped the finished cake with toasted chopped almonds rather than flaked almonds.

I also made it easier for myself to make the compote by simply putting a couple of handfuls  of dried apricots into the cake syrup to cook for around 5 minutes before removing them with a spider while the syrup continued to reduce, and saving a quarter of a cup of the syrup to pour over the apricots - done.

This cake is quite rich, so s little goes  a long way. Serve small slices with icecream or cream for a lovely dessert.

The beautiful brooch decorating the plate is by Fractured Lace.