Moist Orange Italian Hangover Cake
A tender orange cake soaked in a boozy citrus simple syrup. The syrup seeps into the crumb, making the cake incredibly moist, fragrant, and perfectly balanced between bright orange flavor and a warm hint of liqueur
Servings 15 slices
Ingredients
For The Soak Syrup
- 1 1/2 Cups Water (360ml)
- 1 Cup Sugar (200g)
- 1/4 Cup Coitreau (orange liquor) (60ml)
- 1/4 Cup Amaretto (Almond liquor) (60ml)
- 1/4 Cup Vodka (60ml)
For the cake
- 3 Cups All-purpose flour (360g)
- 1 Tablespoon Baking powder
- 1 3/4 Cups Sugar (350g)
- 1 Medium Orange
- 3/4 Cup Milk at room temperature (180ml)
- 2 Tablespooms Cointreau
- 1 Cup Unsalted butter at room temperature (225g)
- 1/2 Cup Olive oil (or canola) (120ml)
- 4 Large Eggs, at room temperature
Instructions
Make The Soak Syrup
- Place the water, sugar, Cointreau, Amaretto, and vodka in a medium saucepan and place over the stovetops.
- Cook over medium-high heat until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture has reached a boil.
- Reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes while stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat, pour into a large measuring cup, and refrigerate while you make the cake.
Make The Cake
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a ten-cup bundt pan.
- Zest and squeeze the orange. Mix the juice with the milk and Cointreau. In a separate bowl, mix the flour and baking powder.
- Rub the orange zest into the sugar.
- Using a stand mixer, or an electric mixer, beat the butter and orange sugar until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl.
- With the mixer on medium speed, slowly drizzle in the oil.
- Add the eggs, one egg at a time, waiting for each egg to completely incorporate before adding the next. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl.
- Reduce speed to low, then add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the milk mixture, starting and ending with the dry ingredients.
- Bake over the medium oven rack for 50-55 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out from the center of the cake with a few moist crumbs.
- Remove from the oven, then immediately soak the cake with the now chilled syrup.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 25-30 minutes, then invert it over a wire rack or a serving plate.
Notes
- Make sure all of the ingredients are at room temperature.
- Store the cake at room temperature, covered for up to three days.
- To freeze, gently wrap the cool cake with plastic wrap, place it in a plastic bag, and freeze for up to four weeks.
- For alcohol-free cakes, replace the liquors with orange juice. Or, replace the syrup with a dust of powdered sugar, a drizzle of ganache, or a citrusy glaze.
- For the cake to soak in the syrup, it needs to be at the opposite temperature of the syrup (warm cake, cold syrup), so plan ahead.
- The boozy flavor comes mainly from the syrup, especially from the vodka, but you can easily adjust it to your taste. It’s hard to say whether the alcohol completely evaporates during cooking, so I don’t recommend serving this version to kids. For an alcohol-free cake, skip the liquor and use orange juice or milk instead