Thursday, July 20, 2006

Lemon and Orange Cake Recipe


We use a combination of lemon and orange juice in this buttery citrus cake. You could use all lemon juice to make a lemon cake, or all orange juice to make an orange cake.

The thin icing sets crisp on top and adds extra citrus flavour and sweetness (the cake itself isn't overly sweet). A dusting of icing sugar would be a nice alternative to icing.

This cake is best served on the day it is made.

Serves about 8.

We use a 20ml tablespoon and 250ml measuring cup for all of our recipes.

185g (3/4 cup) butter, softened (if using unsalted butter, add 1/4 teaspoon fine table salt with the butter)
190g (3/4 cup + 5 teaspoons) caster sugar
3 large eggs at room temperature (we use eggs with a minimum weight of 59g)
1 teaspoon finely grated zest (lemon and/or orange)
185g (1 1/4 cups) self-raising flour
4 tablespoons (80ml) citrus juice (we use 2 tablespoons orange juice and 2 tablespoons lemon juice)

Citrus Icing
150g (1 cup plus 1 tablespoon) icing sugar
30ml (1 1/2 tablespoons) citrus juice (either lemon or orange or a mixture of both)

Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius (150 degrees Celsius fan-forced).

Grease the side and base of a 20cm diameter (inside top measurement) round cake pan. We use a springform pan for easy removal of the cake. Line base and side of the pan with non-stick baking paper.

Using an electric mixer or electric hand-held beaters, beat butter and sugar until very pale and creamy. This could take up to 20 minutes.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating for a few minutes after each addition. Don't rush the addition of the eggs as the mixture will be more likely to separate and develop a curdled appearance. Add the zest with the last egg. © exclusivelyfood.com.au

The butter, sugar, egg and zest mixture should be pale and creamy.

Add half the flour and stir until just combined. Repeat with remaining flour. Mix in juice.

Spoon mixture into prepared pan and spread evenly.

Bake for about 50-55 minutes, or until a thin-bladed knife or wooden skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. The cake should spring back when lightly pressed in the centre.

Sit pan on a wire rack and allow cake to cool. When cooled, remove cake from pan and ice with citrus icing (we turn the cake over and ice the base of the cake for a smoother finish).

Store in an airtight container.

Citrus Icing
Stir icing sugar and juice together in a small bowl until smooth.
© www.exclusivelyfood.com.au


79 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

This is a most beautiful cake - not only is it easy to make but its a lovely tasting cake. I have made it twice (am about to make it a third time) and have had compliments each time.
Thank you for posting such a lovely recipe!

3/11/06 11:52 am  
Blogger mini said...

looks yummy..

is it possible if i use almond mel instead of self raising flour???

20/5/07 8:00 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Mini

We don't think almond meal would be a suitable replacement for the self-raising flour.

If you are looking for a flourless orange cake you could try this one or this one.

23/5/07 6:47 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

jeez this is a great cake!

11/7/07 10:16 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Just made the cake with Organic Wholemeal self raising - it tastes great with a wonderful moist texture, make one now!

26/7/07 12:37 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi
I would like to bake this cake, But not sure about the g to cup conversion. As i don't have any kitchen scale, would you mind to tell me those ingredian in cup please.
Thanks a lot.

27/7/07 2:08 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Jenny

We have added cup measurements to the recipe.

30/7/07 2:27 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I bake this cake the other day . It was sooooo nice. I decorated it with flake almond on top of the sugar glaze. Thank you so much.

1/8/07 8:25 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

HI! am baking for the first time in my life and would like to start with this recipe. i have a few doubts.
1- lemon/orange juice refers to freshly squeezed juice or canned juice.
2- what is lemon zest and how do we get it.

19/8/07 5:26 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

We use freshly squeezed juice in this recipe, but packaged 100% juice would also work.

Lemon zest is the yellow-coloured outside part of the lemon peel (skin). Wash and dry a lemon then use a fine grater to grate off only the yellow-coloured top layer of the lemon peel. You can use orange zest if you prefer.

19/8/07 5:38 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I made this cake for my school SAT and WOW. It was beautifully light & fluffy and had just the right amount of lemon (i didn't use orange) so it wasn't overpowering. The icing was quite runny & worked perfectly for drizzling over the cake for presentation before sinking into the cake to add sweetness. I'll definately be making this again!

28/8/07 5:22 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi i made this cake the other week and it was way toooo buttery, i used the 3/4 cup of butter and it was just way too much so i made it a second time with only 1/2cup of butter or 8 tablespoons.
i wonder if anyone else had the same problem?
well cake attempt 2 is in the oven so wish me luck!!I also used 1 cup &1/2 of s.r flour and at least one serve of lemon juice with the orange, the flavour is amazing.
Its a great recipe and i guess like all of us we make changes according to our personal taste.
Give this a go its worth it!!!

19/10/07 10:24 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

this recipe rocks , tried it last night my family absolutely loved it ....the best orange cake recipe ever.
many thanks
Fiji billy

6/2/08 4:13 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

How is it that the butter and the flour has the same weight in grams when in cups it's different???

13/3/08 5:56 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

One cup of butter does not have the same weight as one cup of flour. Therefore, when the weights of flour and butter are the same, the volumes (cup measurements) must be different.

17/3/08 8:45 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

This is probably one of the easiest cakes I've ever made. I'm not a natural baker and I have difficulty getting my cakes to rise but not with this one. It looked great & tasted lovely - fresh & not too sweet!

29/4/08 12:22 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have just baked this cake with my 17 months old daughter. Put icing sugar on top- it is absolutely delicious - very light, fluffy and just right in regards to sweetnes:) Thank you for a great recipe. Will make it as a birthday cake for my daughter and decorate with icing and sprinkles, etc.

29/5/08 1:02 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

i am not very good at making cakes, so i thought id try and get better and try this one! i melted the butter so the cake turned out very weird, but hey it tastes good!

13/6/08 9:05 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Would it be possible to use lime juice/ zest in this cake as a substitute for the orange and lemon?

11/7/08 12:48 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Yes, any type of citrus fruit should work well in this recipe.

11/7/08 9:48 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Could you give me instructions to use this recipe for cupcakes? I need to make around 50. Thanks!

10/8/08 11:59 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Could you please let us know the dimensions of your cupcake cases so we can calculate the amount of batter that you'll need? We usually use cases that measure 5cm across the base and 7.5cm across the top. For cupcakes of this size, you would probably need to multiply the recipe by 3 or 4.

26/8/08 3:50 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

Hi I'm planning on baking this cake and I don't have an electic mixer, is it ok do beat the butter and sugar by hand? and second, I'm not sure whether I get this right, does the preparation of icing need heat or just mix things in a bowl and that's it?

29/9/08 5:52 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Dana

The aeration of the butter and sugar mixture is an important step in this recipe. It would be hard to achieve the same degree of lightness without an electric mixer or electric hand-held beaters. Do you have a food processor?

There is no need to heat the icing; the ingredients are just stirred together in a bowl.

2/10/08 11:44 pm  
Blogger Sunshine said...

i made it today....and it was a lovely cake.....its sooo soft
i made a few changes though....i replaced the butter with 50gm butter + oil ...and used mango juice(tang) instead of citrus juice....the cake had a nice flavour to it....it kinda keeps u guessing on what the flavour is exactly!!

6/10/08 11:27 pm  
Blogger Christine P said...

Hi, I wanted to make this cake for my brothers bday but i don't have a springform pan. Is it alright just to use a normal cake tin? It looks so yummy...

24/10/08 7:01 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Hi Christy

Yes, you can use a non-springform cake pan for this recipe.

24/10/08 7:18 pm  
Blogger Eddie J said...

I have always loved this cake when i have made it and so have other people that have tasted it im making it for about the 10th time now and i have to say its one of the best and easiest recipes i have come across, over time i have made my own additions one that i like the best is putting black poppy seeds in just after adding the juice and also when the icing has been put on and when still runny i have pealed a little citrus and slicing it finely and scattering it across the icing before it sets wonderful addition and great presentation!!

16/11/08 5:04 pm  
Blogger DennisWong said...

I just made this cake today!
It's really delicious!

I made some slight modifications. (Only slightly).

I made them as cupcakes, and divided them into individual paper cups.

And I reduced the sugar by 1/3, so I used only 1/2 cup of sugar instead of the recommended amount of 3/4 cup.

I didn't have enough butter, so I topped up the rest with canola oil.

It worked perfectly, and my wife loved it!! :)

Thanks!

23/11/08 8:06 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

Lovely! lovely, Lovely! Lovely! Lovely

9/12/08 5:15 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Nice cake, especially for orange lovers like me.
made it exactly to the recipe even if my tin was smaller; the 20cm seemed a tad too large for the amount of mixture i had

shall make again !

24/12/08 5:33 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

very nice! i made it without icing sugar, and added a touch of milk, was so nice and soft and crumbly and yummy!

5/1/09 4:46 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I would like to make this cake for 30 people. Would I just double the mixture?

25/1/09 9:34 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

We find that this cake serves about eight people, so you may need to multiply the quantities by three or four. Are you planning on baking multiple 20cm diameter cakes, or do you wish to bake a single cake in a larger pan?

29/1/09 8:39 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi again,
I was hoping you make this cake for around 30 people in one larger pan.
Any idea on the amount of each ingredient I would need, what size pan and how long to bake it for?
Thanks

30/1/09 11:06 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I have just made this cake and although it is delicious the middle did not rise and sunk even more when I put a tested to see if it was ready. I left it in the oven a little longer when I noticed it wasn't rising but still did not help. Any Ideas?

2/2/09 10:47 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Did you make any changes to the recipe (ingredient quantities, pan size, oven temperature or baking time)? Did you use self-raising flour? When you tested the cake, was the surface of the cake set and golden brown in colour? If not, inserting a knife or skewer into the cake might have caused it to collapse.

5/2/09 8:36 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hi, just made this cake, think i was faithful to the measurements - its good but very greasy - there must be too much butter in there

9/2/09 7:27 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

To the person who asked about making a cake to serve 30 people: You could multiply the ingredient quantities by three and bake the cake in a 30cm square pan. Unfortunately, we can't help with the baking time as we have only tested the time required for a 20cm round cake.

12/2/09 7:37 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

hello amanda & debbie
i loved this cake before i make it :D but i need to ask you somthing is it gonna taste good if i didnt make the lemon icing ???
i was reallly searching for orange cake recpie & i found it but you said it would b more sweet if i made the lemon icingg thankss waiting you kindly replyyyyyyy as soon as possible thanks hunniess

27/2/09 12:10 pm  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Yes, the cake will still taste good without the icing.

9/3/09 3:43 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Is it possible to use all-purpose flour and baking powder as a substitute for the self-rising flour?

22/3/09 7:47 am  
Blogger Amanda and Debbie said...

Yes. If your baking powder package doesn't have any instructions for making self-raising flour, you could use 185g (1 1/4 cups) all-purpose flour and 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder to replace the self-raising flour in this recipe.

22/3/09 12:21 pm  
Anonymous Lisa said...

Hi, I made this yesterday and it was yummy, thanks heaps Amanda and Debbie!! I have 2 q's:

1) Can I make these as cupcakes inside a standard 12 cup muffin pan (about 1/3 cup capacity holes)? If so what would be the oven temp and time, and how full should I fill the cups?

2) Can I make this into a orange lemon poppyseed cake, if so how much poppy seeds to add?

THANK YOU so much, you guys rock, I have made lots of your recipes (meatballs, lasagne, chicken casserole, lamb stew, chicken pie, and a few others) and all are fabulous. I would buy your cookbook if you had one!

11/5/09 11:58 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

How could you put a chocolate/ orange icing on top instead of the citrus icing?

30/6/09 2:14 pm  
Anonymous Nina Meiers said...

I just made this cake - this time I thought I'd really take note of the method and it has turned out beautifully. It looked like yours and tasted as I expected... delish. My darling husband says I need to find more recipes like this!

Thank very much.

Nina Meiers

18/7/09 5:08 pm  
Anonymous Cindy said...

Just finished baking this cake...very yummy!! Athough it is a little greasey and slightly too sweet so may reduce a bit of both next time. Thank you very much for your recipes!! This is the 4th cake recipe I've tried from this site and they all turn out great!! :)

6/8/09 6:49 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

cake was decidedly average. A bit too buttery and not quite zesty enough. Perhaps not one to make with a hand whisk!!!

25/8/09 7:40 pm  
Anonymous Neveen said...

Hi there
I love this site and tried some recipes that turned out great.

I want to try this cake but would love to add a choc element to it.
Do you think it would work out if I add choc drops to the mix??

Alternatively, how would you incorporate choc in the icing?

Thanks again for all the wonderful recipes

9/9/09 1:23 pm  
Anonymous Neveen said...

hi there
i made this cake 4 times already...SUPERB!!!

I used only orange juice and a bit less sugar. For the icing i made a choc orange ganache (200 g of dark choc + about 85g cream + 2 generous tsp orange zest all heated gently and stirred til it melts and combines)

Then i topped the iced cake with fresh orange wedges and wedges of Terry's chocolate orange arranged alternately to make a flower in the middle

It was a winner!

6/10/09 5:32 pm  
Anonymous SugarPlumFairy said...

A lovely site with fantastic recipes,loved reading...& this cake too is delicious even though i had to tweak it ,thats how fool proof ur recipes are,will send u a link as soon as i finish uplaoding all the pics as my connectivity is rather slow this day.

25/10/09 6:10 am  
Blogger ♥Sugar♥Plum♥Fairy♥ said...

Hi again dear Amanda & Debbie,responsible for a treasure of recipes u gys sure are.
My cake doesnt look half as good as urs yet its delicious & lemony just the way wnted & there's barely a piece left now,
here are the pics(would love to share them on ur flicker group but i doubt their good enough,they are not only shot with a camera phone but i;m an amaetr at this)
http://vanillastrawberryspringfields.blogspot.com/2009/10/citrus-lemon-curd-cakemy-1st-xmas-tree.html.
thank u for inspiring my first xmas tree cake of the year

26/10/09 7:10 am  
Blogger ♥Sugar♥Plum♥Fairy♥ said...

all in all waiting to try ur recipe ditto for an excellent cake coz if my cake ,not looked half as good as urs,can imagine how lovely urs mus have been

26/10/09 7:13 am  
Blogger Regina said...

I just tried this recipe, nice taste but I need to play around with the oven/pan since the middle part sinks. I added vanilla extract and reduce the amount of sugar by a bit. TFS.:)

24/1/10 9:34 pm  
Blogger Recipeswap said...

Hi .....I baked this cake today and it came out so good.Thanks for sharing a great recipe.

28/1/10 3:38 am  
Blogger caramelchef said...

This cake was so good and it really is easy to make. Thanks!

1/2/10 9:38 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I put 5gram more butter,5TBSB Citrus and triple zest.
Everyone love it. I've made 6 times now. Thank your for your sharing the recipe.

14/2/10 1:14 am  
Anonymous Fuzzy said...

This is one of my most fav cakes ever.. i ve tried everythin from chocolate cakes to red velvet, but this stays on top! thankyou so much for sharing this recipe.. and yes i ran out of butter and used oil instead, the cake stil was pretty soft! and i used creamcheese icing by cutting the cake into half n puttin it in between.. and it rocked! my parents loved it..and so did the person i made it for:D

16/2/10 2:35 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Very moist cake. My second attempt at baking at, but this time with an electric beater. The first attempt did not turn out well. I am glad that i tried again. Thank you for the recipe.

30/3/10 2:36 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Absolutely perfect! Just made it for the first time - yummy, yummy, yummy! Rave reviews from the family.
I used the weight measurements, not cups, because I wasn't sure if it was in english or US cups. Being English, and living in the US, I have discovered that the two are not the same (my cooking has improved vastly since I discovered this!) - so, if you're having problems with the quantities/flavor/texture, switch to the weight in grams, or make sure you know which cup size you're using :):)
Thanks for a delish cake!

14/5/10 3:29 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

What a magic recipe, will definitely be making this again, thanks for a wonderfully easy and delicious cake recipe!

18/5/10 6:36 pm  
Blogger Rujuta said...

Turned out amazing!!
I sliced it into 2 halves and spread cherry jam between the two layers......simply wonderful!!

7/7/10 7:45 pm  
Anonymous GraceCalleigh said...

Absolutely divine - so moist and buttery with a lovely tangy flavour. The only change I made was not using the glaze as I was baking a party cake. I tripled the recipe for a 3-layer cake and iced them with lemon curd buttercream. The cake cut well and didn't crumble much so it was a joy to work with.

9/7/10 3:55 pm  
Blogger Lisa Foster said...

This recipe was the best cake I have ever made. I especially love the techniques thank you

12/8/10 2:01 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

this cake is the bomb!! Lately my cakes have been turning out without rising but this one was awesome. I love the detailed instruction about creaming the butter and sugar for 20 minutes - YUM

12/8/10 2:12 pm  
Blogger thinker said...

Hi,

I was reading a book of Penelope Livey and i came trough this Orange&Lemon cake (never heard before) I've tried to find a recepie online and yours seems the best. I've tried and I have to admit that it sorted out very well:)
(http://rainbowcaffe.blogspot.com/2010/09/orange-lemon-cake.html)

The only remark is that next time i would increase the orange and lemon zest 'cause it was not strong enough.
Thank you

13/9/10 5:09 am  
Anonymous Jodie said...

This cake is delicious, i love the strong lemon flavor, maybe cause i put more zest and juice. I just used lemon, but next time would love to try with both lemon and orange and also just lime. If you haven't tried this cake you must try it. Keep up the good work girls.

25/9/10 4:19 pm  
Blogger ilcucchiaiodoro said...

I have tried this indeed optimal cake!

http://ilcucchiaiodoro.blog.tiscali.it/2011/01/24/torta-agli-agrumi/

Donatella

25/1/11 6:11 am  
Anonymous Holly Lanagan said...

Prior to discovering this recipe I was not a fan of citrus cakes. I am now a HUGE devotee. The texture is delightfully light, moist and fluffy and the flavour is delicate and sweet. I have made this cake several times and note that each time it has not risen particularly high. For this reason, I have considered baking two cakes and layering them with a citrus, cream frosting. Having said that, I love the simplicity and crispness of the icing included in the recipe. Ultimately, this is the kind of cake that should be enjoyed on a spring or summer afternoon. The flavour is zesty and fresh rather than rich and heavy. Yet another favourite. Thank you Amanda and Debbie.

12/6/11 3:33 pm  
Blogger Sally Al-Abdulmohsen said...

Made it for mom's birthday because she's nuts for orange anything and it turned out to be the best cake I have ever made! I lovvved it and can't wait to bake it again. I would decrease the amount of sugar because I found it a little too sweet for our taste. But the frosting is just perfect!!! such a delicate beautiful cake!

22/10/11 10:17 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi I am just wondering why my cake sunk in the middle while in the oven? it is a fan forced oven and I put it on 150 degrees celcius as suggested? Would love to know what I have done wrong so I can learn from this mistake. Many thanks!

30/4/12 12:29 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

I bake alot and this cake is so beautiful!so delicous i will make it many times! Thanx

30/6/12 12:11 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Fantastic cake, so easy to make! I made one change - when the cake was done, I sliced it in half, spread a layer of orange marmalade on it, and stuck the two halves together. I don't much like frosting, but this gave a really good, moist texture and the bitterness of the marmalade is great for the flavour.

19/8/12 5:56 am  
Anonymous Samantha said...

Delicious and pretty! I don't have a real oven so I had to make some tweaks (ring tin, 40 minutes at 180) but not even my tiny Japanese kitchen could ruin this one. So easy too! My friends were very impressed. Thanks so much for the recipe! I'm sure this will become a favourite.

28/8/12 3:49 am  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Tracie..... I made this cake today... My cakes tend to be fairly flat and well, just yuk, this..... Wow! I've exceeded myself..... Fantastically tangy, moist, lt rose lovely, and tasted. TANGTASTIC......... Going to make a couple more for other people on Thursday...... :)

30/1/13 7:38 am  
Blogger Teepearl said...

Made this cake to share with friends and turned out great.... My icing was really thick though, either way it was delightful! This recipe is a keeper and super easy to make!
Thanks so much for sharing!

25/8/13 6:38 pm  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi! I jst made this cake and it was good :) I put in the zest of an entire orange though and creamed it together with the sugar and butter. I also followed another reader's suggestion of cutting the sugar to 1/2 cup and found it to be just right for our tastebuds. I baked the batter in two small loaf pans. One is already practically gone as my 3-year old loves it! Thank you for the recipe :) - nadia, malaysia

7/11/13 11:02 pm  
Blogger Lynn said...

I made this cake yesterday. Loved it. Thank you for the recipe.

30/11/17 3:52 pm  
Blogger Unknown said...

Hello Amanda and Debbie, could I make this cake ahead of time? How long will it keep for in a fridge or freezer?

22/9/18 11:26 am  

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