Orange Cardamom Cake

Thanks to the enthusiasm on Facebook over my post about possibly blogging the recipe to the Orange Cardamom Cake I made for my stepdad’s wedding, I’m going to. But don’t think I always will give in to peer pressure, because I was planning on posting it anyway.

So here’s the deal, I like to experiment on recipes and have no problem doing so when it comes to someone’s wedding cake. I know this makes me a bad person in some eyes, but alas, I don’t care. I’ve never come up with an abhorrent flavor combination that caused anyone to become physically ill and start convulsing, so I’m pretty confident in my ability to go with my gut and trust my own judgment. Yeah, I’m pretty snazzy like that.

However, when experimenting on other people’s cake, I don’t usually like to start with a scratch recipe. Let me explain. Baking is pretty scientific, which really means that there are ratios involved which shouldn’t be adjusted too much otherwise the whole thing could be a disaster. I’ve found that by using a white cake mix with pudding that I can experiment to my heart’s delight and not have to worry so much if my liquid ratios are off by a little. Of course, years in the kitchen doing these experiments will eventually yield the expertise required to know when one of your creations will be a success or a dud. With that in mind, here is the recipe.

Orange Cardamom Cake
1 box white cake mix with pudding
4 eggs
¾ cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ teaspoon ground cardamom
½ teaspoon cinnamon
zest and juice of 2 oranges
water (I’ll tell you how much)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Zest oranges using a microplane or a small grater, or simply use a paring knife to peel just the orange zest and not the bitter pith and finely mince. Juice the oranges into a fine mesh sieve set over a 2 cup or larger glass measuring cup and add enough water to equal one cup, or if you happen to have orange juice, use that. In the bowl of an electric mixer on low speed, combine cake mix, cardamom and cinnamon until well blended. Add eggs, oil, vanilla, orange zest and juice and mix on low until combined, about 1 minute. Divide between two 8 or 9 inch pans or a 9x13 pan and bake for 25-30 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes before turning out to cool completely on a wire rack. Or make cupcakes and bake for 17 minutes. Frost with your favorite buttercream frosting. Of course, this would make a great Bundt cake too and just drizzle a simple glaze or dust with powdered sugar.