Winter citrus cake

We all need a color injection in these winter months so, thank god for the brightness of winter citrus! This winter citrus cake, adapted from Melissa Clark’s recipe, is my current favorite way to incorporate cara cara and blood oranges into a special dessert.

Also, how pretty does it look? I brought this cake to a dinner party over the weekend, and it made for a perfect winter dessert that was a complete and total crowd-pleaser.

{ps.} Things may get a little messy so, just be prepared for the blood orange juice to get everywhere, it’s part of the fun. If you want to watch a video on how to supreme an orange, Martha explains it all here.

Winter citrus cake

A winter citrus upside down cake.

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Prep TimePrep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook TimeCook Time 45 minutes minutes

Total TimeTotal Time 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients  

• 2 sticks + 3 tablespoons butter at room temperature
• 0.5 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 2 oranges peeled, cleaned, sliced into rounds or supremed
• 2 tablespoons fresh orange zest
• 1 cup cornmeal
• 0.5 cup AP flour
• 1.5 teaspoons baking powder
• 1.5 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 eggs at room temperature
• 0.3 cup kefir or buttermilk
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean powder optional

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350F. Use a deep 9 inch pan or a cast iron pan. On the stovetop, melt 3 tablespoons butter with brown sugar and lemon juice, stirring with a wooden spoon until lightly caramelized. Take off of heat.
• Arrange orange slices on top of the caramel mixture and set pan aside.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together orange zest, cornmeal, flour, baking powder, and salt.
• In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand mixer!), cream together butter and sugar. Gradually add in the eggs, then the kefir and vanilla extract and vanilla powder, if using.
• Slowly add in the flour mixture into the dough. Do not over mix!
• Pour batter into the pan over the oranges and smooth out the top. Bake for about 40-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
• Let cake cool out of the oven for 15-20 minutes before carefully running a knife along the edges of the cake and inverting it onto a platter.

That moment when you flip over the cake – et voila! It’s so gorgeous. The juices from the oranges soak through the rest of the cake and make it extra flavorful.