Blood Orange Olive Oil Upside Down Cake Recipes

BLOOD ORANGE OLIVE OIL CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Grate zest from 2 oranges and place in a bowl with sugar. Using your fingers, rub ingredients together until orange zest is evenly distributed in sugar.
• Supreme an orange: Cut off bottom and top so fruit is exposed and orange can stand upright on a cutting board. Cut away peel and pith, following curve of fruit with your knife. Cut orange segments out of their connective membranes and let them fall into a bowl. Repeat with another orange. Break up segments with your fingers to about 1/4-inch pieces.
• Halve remaining orange and squeeze juice into a measuring cup. You will have about 1/4 cup or so. Add buttermilk or yogurt to juice until you have 2/3 cup liquid altogether. Pour mixture into bowl with sugar and whisk well. Whisk in eggs.
• In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Gently whisk dry ingredients into wet ones. Switch to a spatula and fold in olive oil a little at a time. Fold in pieces of orange segments. Scrape batter into pan and smooth top.
• Bake cake for about 55 minutes, or until it is golden and a knife inserted into center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes, then unmold and cool to room temperature right-side up. Serve with whipped cream and honey-blood orange compote, if desired.

UPSIDE-DOWN BLOOD ORANGE AND ROSEMARY OLIVE OIL CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch round cake pan with nonstick cooking spray.
• Combine the brown sugar, butter, rosemary and the finely grated zest of 1 blood orange (about 1 teaspoon) in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the butter is melted, the sugar has dissolved and the mixture comes to a full boil, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly, about 10 minutes. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and use an offset spatula to spread evenly (it's OK if the caramel looks grainy).
• Finely grate the zest of 1 blood orange into a large bowl and set aside. Cut the ends off 3 of the blood oranges, then remove the skin in strips working to expose the flesh all the way around the fruit. Slice the oranges into 1/8-inch-thick rounds and remove any seeds. Arrange the slices over the brown sugar in the pan, overlapping them slightly as needed so that no sugar can be seen. Set aside.
• Add 1 cup of the granulated sugar and the olive oil to the bowl with the orange zest and whisk to combine. Add the eggs and vanilla and whisk until lightened, about 4 minutes. Add the flour, baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon salt and mix until just combined, about 1 minute. Slowly pour in the milk and continue whisking until combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula to make sure everything is incorporated.
• Carefully pour the batter over the orange slices in the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 40 to 50 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool slightly, about 30 minutes. Run a small knife or offset spatula around the edge of the cake to loosen. Invert a large plate or serving platter on top of the pan and flip to unmold. Let cool completely, about 1 hour.
• Meanwhile, line a baking sheet with parchment. Juice half of the remaining orange (save the other half for another use). Add the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, 2 tablespoons of the blood orange juice and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt to a small saucepan and stir with a heatproof rubber spatula or wooden spoon to combine. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture turns rust colored around the edges, 2 to 3 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and fold in the pistachios until well coated and shiny. Pour onto the prepared baking sheet, breaking up any large clumps with a wooden spoon and allow to dry completely, about 15 minutes.
• Chop or crush the candied pistachios with a heavy glass to break up any larger pieces. Sprinkle the pistachios around the rim of the cake before serving.