Three Citrus Cake

It’s that magical time of year! When the snow’s been on the ground for months, sunlight is a distant memory, and you’re fairly certain you have seasonal affective disorder: IT’S CITRUS TIME, BABY.

I’m still on the fence on what to call this one  – Three Citrus Cake? Citrus Loaf Cake? Rebecca? I’ll leave it to you to decide, but I can tell you that it’s loaded with an absurd amount of citrus zest and topped with a blood orange icing that is both delicious and that particularly twee shade of millennial pink. The result? A cake that’s a cute little ray of sunshine all on its own.

And because we fancy, drop some pomegranate arils on top to really class it up. It certainly doesn’t hurt that they add a crisp and refreshing element to every bite.

On a whim I used crème fraîche to up the fat content (completely untested, because that’s what makes for good baking amirite), and there was a moment about thirty minutes into baking where the center looked to be slightly… structurally unsound. I watched with growing concern as it started to buckle, but thankfully, my worries were unwarranted: after it settled, I was left with a rich and soft pan of citrusy goodness.

The exterior is buttery and textural and crisp, and the interior is a dense and moist perfect crumb. I don’t even care that it sank a bit in the middle – especially because when you bake it in one of those adorable Nordic Ware novelty pans, you get to flip that bitch upside down and hide any failing loaf infrastructure.

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Three Citrus Cake

Packed with three types of citrus, drizzled with blood orange glaze and topped with pomegranate arils, this cake is perfect for spring or to cure your winter blues.

Course Dessert

Keyword baking, citrus

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 45 minutes

Total Time 1 hour

Servings 8 slices

Ingredients

For the cake:

• 1/2 cup butter room temperature
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp lemon zest
• 1 tbsp navel orange zest
• 1 tbsp blood orange zest
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 pinch salt
• 2 tbsp blood orange juice
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp vanilla juice
• 1/3 cup crème fraîche

For the glaze:

• 2 1/2 tbsp blood orange juice
• 1 cup powdered sugar

Topping (optional):

• pomegranate arils

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350° F. Grease a 8.5" x 4.5" loaf pan (or the novelty Nordic Ware loaf pan of your choice) with butter. (If using a novelty pan, brushing melted butter into the pan with a silicon brush yields the best results.)

2. Combine butter and sugar in a stand mixer and beat thoroughly, about 30 seconds.

3. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, and add eggs one at a time while beating on low. Add citrus zest, and mix until just incorporated.

4. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

5. In another small bowl, combine crème fraîche, 2 tbsp of blood orange juice, 1 tsp of lemon juice, and vanilla extract.

6. Add half of the crème fraîche mixture and half of the flour mixture to the batter, and mix until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and repeat, mixing thoroughly.

7. Transfer batter to the pan and bake for 45 minutes, until the edges are golden and a toothpick poked into the center of the cake comes clean. Let the cake fully cool before glazing.

8. Whisk the powdered sugar and 2 1/2 tbsp of blood orange juice until smooth. When the cake is cool, pour the glaze over top (or drizzle to your liking). Top with pomegranate arils.

Recipe Notes

Adapted from Foodness Gracious' Blood Orange Loaf Cake.