Easy Tangerine Cake

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Tangerine Cake is bursting with fresh citrus flavor and has a sweet and tart Tangerine Glaze on top. It’s a stunning cake that’s surprisingly easy to make!

This week I received a package that contained a bunch of citrus fruit.  I was excited because it’s winter, I love citrus fruit, and I wanted to bake something to brighten up our day.

One of the fruits I received were tangerines from Melissa’s Produce.   While I’ve had tangerines before they are not something that I normally buy so I was interested in working with them. 

What are tangerines?

Tangerines are a type of small citrus fruit that are related to oranges. They are typically smaller and less rounded than oranges, with a slightly flattened shape. Tangerines are known for their bright orange color, easy-to-peel skin, and sweet, juicy flesh.  Tangerines are rich in vitamin C and are a popular fruit during the winter months in many parts of the world.

I began scouring my citrus recipes to see if there was a simpliar recipe I could make.   I have Spiced Orange Scones that are really tasty. There’s also a sweet and tart Grapefruit Loaf Cake that would be nice to make.  Another contender was my Meyer Lemon Bundt Cake.

In the end I decided to make a cake similar to my Easy Kumquat Cake but this time I wanted to add some spices to the cake.  After searching my spice cabinet I decided that cardamom would be the perfect accompaniment to my Tangerine Cake.

What is cardamom?

Cardamom is a spice that comes from the seeds of plants in the ginger family. There are two main types of cardamom: green cardamom and black cardamom. Cardamom is used whole or ground in various dishes, including curries, rice dishes, desserts, beverages, and baked goods. It is also a popular ingredient in spice blends like garam masala.

Ingredients:

• tangerines (you can substitute oranges if you can’t find tangerines but tangerines are preferred)
• eggs
• granulated sugar
• brown sugar (I use light brown sugar but dark brown sugar can be used as well)
• all purpose flour (I find this works best because the cake is already dense; you can also use cake flour)
• baking powder (make sure it is still in date so that your cake will rise)
• cardamom (I used Selefina Spices cardamom)
• vanilla Greek yogurt (you can also use plain Greek yogurt but I like the extra burst of flavor from the vanilla)
• vanilla bean paste (I use Taylor & Colledge Vanilla Bean Paste because it packs a lot of flavor and you can see the vanilla specks in the cake.  You can also use vanilla extract)
• salt (just table salt works well in this cake)

To make the cake preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 inch springform pan with baking spray and set aside.

Peel the tangerines and place them in a food processor or a Magic Bullet. Process until they are in little bits but not totally pureed.

What can I substitute for the tangerines?

While tangerines are my preferred fruit in this recipe you could use oranges, blood oranges, or mandarin oranges.   You could also use kumquats or clementines in place of the tangerines for a similar outcome and flavor.

In a large bowl combine the butter, sugar, and brown sugar and mix well. In in the eggs and vanilla bean paste and mix well.

In another bowl combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and cardamom. Add half the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and mix until combined. Stir in the sour cream and mix well.

Add remaining flour mixture and mix until combined. Pour in the pureed tangerines and mix until well combined.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes then remove from pan to cool completely.

At this point you can make an easy glaze with powdered sugar and fresh tangerine juice.  I also like to add a drop of orange food coloring to make it a brighter orange color but both the glaze and the food coloring are optional.

This cake is pretty dense and has a texture that is reminiscent of a pound cake.  It has a bright citrus flavor and the glaze helps to bring out the fruitiness.  Candied tangerines can be used as decoration on top.

I think this is a great cake to serve in the winter to help brighten up everyone’s day.  It’s also easy to make because it’s only one layer and has a glaze instead of having to be frosted. 

Tangerine Cake

Sweet and tart Tangerine Cake with tangerine glaze will brighten up your day.

5 from 3 votes

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Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 55 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Servings: 12 servings

Author: Hezzi-D

Equipment

• 1 9 inch springform pan
• 1 Mixing Bowl

Ingredients

• For the cake:
• 4 medium tangerines
• 1/2 c. 1 stick butter
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 1/2 c. brown sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
• 1 3/4 c. flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/3 c. sour cream

For the glaze:

• 1/2 c. powdered sugar
• 1 Tablespoon fresh tangerine juice

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottom of a springform pan with parchment paper and spray the sides with baking spray. Set aside.
• Peel the tangerines and place in a food processor and process until they are in little bits but not yet pureed.
• In a large bowl cream together the butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Mix until well combined.
• Add in the eggs and vanilla bean paste and mix until combined.
• Mix together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cardamom in a medium bowl.
• Add half the flour mixture to the sugar mixture and mix until combined.
• Stir in the sour cream and mix well.
• Add the remaining flour mixture and mix until combined.
• Add the processed tangerines to the cake batter and mix until completely combined.
• Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan.
• Bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes.
• Run a butter knife around the edges of the pan and remove the sides of the springform pan. Cool cake completely.
• To make the glaze whisk together the tangerine juice and powdered sugar. Whisk until smooth.
• Pour the glaze over top of the cake allowing some to drip down the sides.
• If desired sprinkle with orange or clear sanding sugar. Place a few tangerine slices on top for decoration.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Christina’s Cusina

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