Final Year of the 20s

Chris turned the ripe old age of 29 on Thursday, and to commemorate the start to his last year of his 20s, I baked him an orange cake with milk chocolate frosting (his requested flavors). I will soon be joining him in the last year of my 20s, so I can only tease him about his old age for about 2 weeks.

I love citrus-flavored cakes, so I was excited that Chris asked for an orange cake. I've been so high on buttermilk cakes that I thought about making my standard yellow cake recipe and modifying it by adding orange zest and orange juice, but I thought I should continue to branch out and try new recipes. I found a well-reviewed recipe for orange cake online, so I was set in the cake department.

What was more difficult was finding a good frosting recipe. I love my standby chocolate frosting recipe using butter, cocoa, evaporated milk, confectioner's sugar and vanilla, but Chris wanted a frosting made with milk chocolate, not cocoa. I am nothing but accommodating, so I tried to find an appropriate recipe. I struggled because the only chocolate frosting recipes I know of that use chocolate are more accurately chocolate ganache, not frosting. Given more time and thought, I'm sure I could have found a recipe (or created my own) for a fudge-like milk chocolate frosting, but I failed at being a domestic queen and ended up just making a ganache for the outside of the cake and an orange cream cheese frosting filling.

I really like this cake and the filling - the orange flavor was really lovely, and the cake was tender. The accompanying frosting/ganache wasn't as successful as I had hoped, so I won't include the recipe here. If anyone has any suggestion for a frosting made with milk chocolate, please let me know. I'd say this cake wasn't quite as successful as last year's cake, but we both enjoyed it, and it was a good kick-off to the last year of Chris's 20s.

Orange Cake w/ Cream Cheese Filling

2 oranges
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 cup orange marmalade
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup white sugar
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup orange juice

4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon white sugar
2 tablespoons orange marmalade

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter/spray two 8-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper.

Remove zest from oranges, place in food processor and coarsely chop. Add 1/3 cup sugar and blend until peel is minced. Add 1/4 cup marmalade and pulse until mixture is pureed. Transfer to large mixing bowl and add butter and vanilla.

Beat mixture until light and fluffy. Beat in 1 cup sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Sift together flour, baking power, and baking soda in small bowl. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the orange juice, mixing just until incorporated. Divide batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire rack and cool completely.

For filling - beat together cream cheese, 1 Tbsp. sugar and 2 Tbsp. orange marmalade.

For frosting - it's up to you!