Blood Orange, Chocolate and Almond Cake

I've not been feeling myself this week, so apologies for lack of posting. Hopefully this one will make up for it. Blood oranges have just started cropping up again, so I took the opportunity to have a go at using them in a chocolate cake. Slightly tarter than regular oranges I think they also have a more interesting flavour, a wonderful fragrance and work really well in cakes and tarts. This cake looks spectacular, but is actually very easy to make. The only real thing you need to keep an eye on is the candying of the oranges and melting of the chocolate, just to make sure they don't go too far on the heat. Oh and before I forget, this cake is flour and dairy free so great for those with intolerances.

Prep time: 20 Mins

Baking time: 40 Mins

200g Caster Sugar

6 Medium Eggs

2 Blood Oranges

1tsp Baking Powder

300g Ground Almonds

50g Cocoa Powder

For the Candied Oranges

2 Blood Oranges

75g Caster Sugar

150ml Water

100g Dark Chocolate (I used a 71% one)

OK, so let's get started. Preheat the oven to 190C/375F/Gas 5 and grease/line the base of a 23cm springform tin. You can use an oil or butter for this, depending on your preference but just make sure it's well greased, especially if your tin is ridged at the bottom. In a large bowl whisk together the eggs and the sugar until combined. Add in the zest of both of the oranges and the juice of one (You can eat the other!), then give it another whisk. Fold in the baking powder with 100g of the ground almonds. Follow that with the 50g of the cocoa, then finish by folding in the last 200g of ground almonds. Pour into your tin and bake in the centre of the oven for about 40 minutes, until a skewer can be removed from the centre of the cake easily, but slightly crumby. When you're happy remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 45 minutes or so.

Whilst the cake is cooling you can candy your oranges. Slice your oranges thinly, no more than a few mm thick and carefully place them in as large a saucepan as you have. Tip in the sugar, followed by the water and leave on a medium/high heat until boiling. Now the time for this will depend on your size of pan but you want to let that reduce significantly, occasionally and carefully turning the oranges over in the syrup. I think for me it took about 15 minutes. When the syrup has reduced to nearly nothing turn off the heat and leave to cool for about 30 minutes. 

To finish, carefully remove the warm cake from the tin. Arrange the syrupy slices of blood orange on top of the cake, overlapping slightly. Melt the 100g of chocolate in a bain-marie or microwave then using a small spoon, drizzle it all over the oranges. You don't have to use all of the chocolate, it's up to you!