Mandarine Cakes

For us, Mandarins are part of our holiday seasons traditional foods, and these Mandarine Cakes I've created remind me of those days. Treat yourself to something amazing!

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These Mandarine Cakes were inspired by a recipe from my mother-in-law, one of my biggest influences when it comes to everything food. Every time we visit her she makes an orange cake, filled with light, fresh citrus taste.

A couple of years ago she tried to make it here, but for some reason, our oranges didn't yield the right result. It was disappointing.

And then came Christmas, and Christmas here means mandarin oranges. I wondered if mandarin oranges might yield a better result. They did. The mixture between vanilla and the citric aroma of mandarin oranges really did the trick. You will love it.

The arrival of mandarines on corner fruit stands signals the beginning of the holiday season in the Dominican Republic. Treat your guests to the flavor of the season.

Buen provecho!

Mandarine Cakes Recipe

Mandarine Cakes Recipe: The arrival of mandarin oranges on our fruit stands signals the arrival of the holiday season. Treat yourself to something amazing!

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Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Servings: 6 servings

Recipe Author: Clara Gonzalez

Ingredients

For the cake

• 1 stick of butter at room temperature , plus extra to grease pan
• 1 cup of all-purpose flour , plus extra to flour pan
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 2 eggs , at room temperature
• 2 tablespoons of mandarin juice
• 1/4 teaspoon of mandarin zest

For the syrup

• Peel of a quarter of a mandarin orange
• 2 cups of water
• 1 cup of mandarin juice
• 1/4 cup of brown sugar
• Seeds of 1/2 vanilla pod , or 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Instructions

For the cake

• Preheat oven to 350 ºF [175 ºC].
• Grease and flour a 6-hole mini-bundt pan (see notes).
• Sift flour and baking soda together. Set aside.
• In a mixer bowl, using your paddle attachment, whisk the butter and sugar over medium speed until it turns a lighter color (about 1 minute). Add eggs, one at a time, beating 30 seconds between each egg. Add the mandarine juice beating until it has been mixed in thoroughly.
• Increase the speed to maximum and add the flour in quarters, waiting until each quarter has been thoroughly incorporated before adding more.
• Add the zest. and mix in.
• Pour into the pan and bake for 25 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
• Cool to room temperature before removing from the pan.

For the syrup

• Wash the mandarine peel. Scrape off the white layer from inside. Chop into thin slivers.
• Mix water, juice, sugar, vanilla, and boil over very low heat until the liquid has reduced to half a cup.
• When it's time to serve, bathe the cakes with the syrup and serve garnished with the peels.

Tips and Notes

In case you've never squeezed a mandarine before (I hadn't), just do it like a regular orange and remember to sieve before using.

I used this sylicone 6-hole mini-bundt pan that requires no greasing.