Orange and Hazelnut Yoghurt cake

I don’t usually consider oranges to be the most inspiring of fruits. To me they are, well, quite boring and ordinary, actually. Except during this time of the year, our oranges at this time of the year are super sweet and filled with so much juicy goodness, that they just cannot be ignored. I decided to take full advantage of the season’s offerings and baked up this delicious Orange and Hazelnut Yoghurt cake this weekend. I got the recipe out of a book called Cakes to celebrate love and life by Callie Maritz and Mari-Louis Guy. The aroma that fills the air whilst this cake is baking is undeniably entrancing. The warm aromtic cake then gets doused in orange syrupy goodness, before being topped with roatsed crushed hazelnuts and candied orange slices.

Orange and Hazelnut Yoghurt Cake:

Ingredients:

Cake:

350g Self Raising Flour
115g Ground Hazelnuts
150g Castor Sugar
5ml Baking Powder
2 large eggs lighly beaten
250ml Bulgarian Yoghurt
155ml sunflower oil
zest of 1 Lemon

Orange Syrup:

280ml Water
350g Castor Sugar
Juice of 1 orange
Juice of 1 Lemon
zest of 1 Orange

Method:

Preheat the Oven to 180 degrees (Celsius). Combine all the ingredients for the cake and beat until everything is mixed together. The consistency will be very thick and sticky. Spoon batter into a prepared cake tin and baked for 30-45 minutes. While the cake is baking, prepare the syrup. Place all the ingredients in a small pot and bring to the boil, continue to boil until all the sugar has dissolved. Pour the syrup over the cake while it is still hot. Top with roasted crushed hazelnuts and candied orange slices.