Orange and Almond Chiffon Cake

Yield: One 10-inch Tube Cake

The glaze used here is also available as a standalone recipe: Orange Glaze (Chiffon Cake).

Ingredients

• 1 ¾ cups (420 ml) blanched almond flour
• ¾ cup (180 ml) cornstarch or potato starch*, sifted
• 1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons (10 ml) baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon (4 ml) salt
• ½ cup (4 fluid ounces) vegetable oil
• 6 egg yolks
• ½ cup (4 fluid ounces) orange juice
• 1 Tablespoon (15 ml) grated orange zest, about 2 oranges
• 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract
• 8 egg whites

* To make this cake Kosher for Passover, use potato starch.

Orange Glaze

• 3 ounces (85 g) powdered sugar, sifted
• 2 Tablespoons (30 ml) orange juice
• 2 teaspoons (10 ml) grated orange zest
• Sliced almonds and strawberries, for garnish, optional

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C). Have an ungreased 10-inch (25 cm) tube or angel food cake pan ready. Find a long-necked wine bottle to use when cooling the cake in Step 7. (If it is empty, fill it with water to keep it from falling over when used.)
2. Stir together the almond flour, cornstarch, ¾ cup (180 ml) of the sugar, the baking powder, and the salt in a medium size bowl.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, egg yolks, orange juice, orange zest, and vanilla until well combined, making sure there are no lumps in the mixture. Fold the almond flour mixture into the egg yolk mixture.
4. Beat the egg whites until foamy in the clean, grease-free bowl of a mixer fitted with the whip attachment. Slowly beat in the remaining sugar, and continue beating until the egg whites are stiff but not dry.
5. Stir one-third of the egg whites into the batter to lighten it, then fold in the remaining egg whites.
6. Pour the batter into the ungreased tube pan. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, approximately 1 hour.
7. Immediately invert the pan over the neck of the bottle and allow the cake to hang upside down until it is completely cool. Loosen the edges of the cake with a long knife and remove the cake from the pan.
8. Stir the glaze ingredients together in a small bowl and drizzle over the top of the cooled cake.

Notes: Serve this cake the day it is glazed. It will keep covered for a few days at room temperature but it may lose some of its volume.