Gluten Free Orange Cake

Tis the season for fever's, flu's and just about any other common cold that strives to keep us down in the winter. Ironically enough, it is also citrus season here in Arizona! Where lemon and orange trees become fruitful and ready to be harvested. What perfect time for nature to come alive and provide healing fruits to help keep our immune systems up and working.

Most health benefits are received through direct consumption. But, given my need to bake at the moment, I decided to get creative and try something different! This recipe was inspired by Organic oranges and farm fresh eggs I purchased from my local(Flagstaff) CSA this week. As well as a favorite family recipe my Grandma, or Mother would make-orange pound cake. I can remember the cake being drenched in this delicious glaze that would soak into the cake making it get even better and moist as days went on. Mmmm.

Unfortunately, as much as I loved family recipes, most of them come with lots and lots of processed sugar, butter, and white flour. All of which I try to keep out of my diet. So, I decided to see if I could revamp this old tradition into something new, that is just as delicious, but with healthier alternatives. This is where the real creativity happens.

I replaced all processed white sugar, with "clean" alternatives like coconut sugar, and local honey for sweeteners, as well as a creative gluten-free flour blend. I also decided to throw an extra spin in there by adding some dairy-free, citrus flavored cream cheese filling, layered in the middle of the cake. Making it extra delectable and flavorful only using the good stuff!

All in all, I was extremely happy with the end result. I enjoyed the cake for days, and never felt over stuffed on sweetness. The citrus cream cheese center helped to keep the cake nice and moist for days to come, and added an extra refreshing flavor with each bite. The additional extra glaze drizzle made it sweet and slightly crunchy on the top like a doughnut.

I hope you enjoy this new rendition of a family favorite, Orange pound cake. Perfect winter treat! As always, let me know if you try it, what you think, and if you did anything different!

      ORANGE CREAM POUND CAKE

CAKE:

Dry Ingredients:

1 C almond flour

½ C brown rice flour

½ C coconut flour

½ c tapioca flour

½ c coconut sugar

½ t fresh grated ginger

1/8 t xanthum gum (or 1 tbsp extra flour)

dash of salt

Wet Ingredients:

¼ c local honey

2 ripe organic oranges

1/3 c  softened grass fed butter

½ c grapeseed oil

4 farm fresh eggs

1 t vanilla

CREAM FILLING:

1 8 oz container of Tofutti cream cheese

1 tbsp grated orange rind

1 tbsp orange juice

(combine in a food processor or blender, set aside)

ICING: OPTIONAL

¼ c coconut oil

 ¼ c coconut sugar

1/3 c orange juice

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Lightly grease or prepare bunt cake pan.

In a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients except coconut sugar. Set aside.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, place washed oranges in the pot (skins included). Boil for an hour or until completely softened. Once ready, blend them fully in a food processor or vita-mix. Adding the wet ingredients. Then alternating the coconut sugar with the eggs. Once fully blended, begin to add the rest of the dry ingredients to the batter.

Then in your prepared bunt pan, distribute half of the batter evenly into the bottom of the pan. Next, take your cream filling and place on top of batter forming a thin layer. Finally, add the rest of the cake batter on top of the cream layer.

Place in the oven for 60 minutes, checking the top to make sure it doesn't burn(cover with parchment paper if needed). When finished let the cake cool for a full 30 minutes. Lastly, melt all icing ingredients together and drizzle on top for additional sweetness if needed. Also, let the icing cool till hard, serve and enjoy!!