Sicilian Orange Cake
Gluten free, grain free and no refined sugar. You can eat it for breakfast.
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Hello friends!
A Monday morning newsletter is a little unusual, but this past week or so has been packed with summer fun with family and friends. This weekend, we overnighted on the boat at Sucia, one of the San Juan Islands. On the way home Saturday night, we saw a pod of Orcas! Magestic.
But let’s talk about this Orange Cake. On our recent trip to Sicily, we stayed at Monaci delle Terre Nere, an organic farm and winery at the base of Mt. Etna. Every morning, we walked to the terrace for a beautiful breakfast overlooking the olive groves that stretched towards the sea. The breakfast buffet was filled with local cheeses, fruit from the farm, vegetable salads, homemade granola and an array of sweets, including a gluten-free orange and almond cake.
Bear with me for a short story. I rarely eat anything sweet. When I first started on the journey to improve my gut health, about 7 or 8 years ago, I did an elimination diet. As part of the diet, I removed all forms of sugar for about 6 to 8 weeks. It was enough time to completely get rid of my sweet tooth, and it’s never returned. Sweets rarely appeal to me, except for these cookies. But the orange cake, rich with Sicilian almonds and not-very-sweet, felt like the perfect breakfast to pair with coffee.
Eat this cake for breakfast or enjoy a bit for your mid-afternoon coffee break. The cake is gluten free and grain free and sweetened only with coconut sugar. And with 3 cups of ground almonds in the recipe and a good amount of healthy fat, it won’t spike your blood sugar.
I might not be back with another newsletter for a few weeks. We’re leaving this morning on the boat for Desolation Sound, a marine park on the coast of mainland British Columbia. We're planning to be gone almost three weeks. You can follow along with the trip on Instagram, if you like. We’re hoping to see Orcas, humpbacks, porpoises and—if we’re lucky—a black bear. And Theo will be fishing for salmon, of course.
Thank you for reading, friends! It truly means a lot to receive your comments and photos. I love sharing these recipes and tidbits of life with you. And if you don’t already subscribe to this newsletter, you can do so here.
With love,
Lisa
Sicilian Orange Cake
The almonds in Sicily have a strong flavor of almond extract, which most California almonds lack. You could add a tiny bit of almond extract to the cake, if you like. I also think it would be delicious brushed with a little orange marmalade.
Makes 1 cake, serving 10 to 12
4 large eggs, divided
3/4 cup coconut sugar
1 large orange, zest and juice (about 1/2 cup orange juice)
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing the pan
3 cups ground almonds (see note)
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
powdered sugar or orange marmalade, to garnish
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 8- or 9-inch round springform round pan with extra virgin olive oil.
In a large bowl, add the coconut sugar and the egg yolks. Save the egg whites in a separate bowl. Beat with a whisk until combined. The mixture will be grainy.
Add the orange zest, orange juice and olive oil. Whisk together. Add the ground almonds, baking powder and sea salt and whisk again.
Using a stand mixer, eat the egg whites until firm. Fold the egg whites into the cake batter.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown and the center feels firm. Let cool and then remove from the pan. Dust with powdered sugar or brush with a little orange marmelade.
Note: To make the ground almonds, put 3 cups raw almonds on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Let cool completely. Place the almonds in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely ground. You may need to do this in batches. Measure out 3 cups of the ground almonds to use in the cake. In a pinch, you could use almond flour instead of the ground almonds. But the cake won’t have the exact same flavor or texture.
I hope you love it.