Clementine cake
Clementine cake is a cake flavored primarily with clementines. It may be topped with a sweet glaze or sauce, powdered sugar, honey and clementines, or candied clementines. It may originate from an orange cake in Sephardic cuisine. In popular culture, the cake played a minor part in the plot of the 2013 film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.
Type | Cake |
---|---|
Course | Dessert |
Created by | Possibly originated from an orange cake developed by the Sephardi Jews |
Serving temperature | Cold or warmed |
Main ingredients | Clementine fruit and typical cake ingredients |
Similar dishes | Fruitcake |
Preparation and variations
Clementine cake is prepared with clementines, ground almonds or almond meal, flour, sugar, butter and eggs.[1][2] Optional ingredients include orange juice, orange muscat, milk, white dessert wine, or Riesling wine,[3][4] orange oil or tangerine oil (or both),[3] almond extract and vanilla extract.[3] Some variations exist, such as being prepared without the use of flour.[2][5] It can also be prepared as an upside-down cake.[6][7]
The cake can be prepared with clementines and/or clementine zest mixed in the batter,[1][8][9] with them atop the cake, such as in slices, and in both ways.[2] The seeds and membrane of the clementine can be removed as part of the preparation process,[2][4][10] or seedless clementines can be used.[11] Whole, sliced clementines including the peel,[1][12] or peeled clementines can be used,[10] and the clementines can be cooked before being used in the cake batter.[13] The fruit can be chopped or blended using a food processor.[13] Candied clementines can be used atop the cake or as a garnish.[3][2] The almonds used can be toasted or blanched.[3][11]
Clementine cake can be finished with a sweet topping such as a sugar or chocolate glaze,[2][14] a fudge or chocolate sauce,[8][15] powdered sugar or honey.[1][2][16] Clementine cake may be dense and moist,[10] and its flavor may improve a day or more after preparation,[2][5][13] because the ingredients intermingle and coalesce to enhance its flavor as it ages. After being cooked, the cake may be delicate and can fall if it is wiggled too much.[12] After preparation, it can be frozen to preserve it.[17]
- A slice of vanilla clementine cake
- Vanilla clementine cake and cupcakes
History
Clementine cake is probably related to a Sephardic orange cake.[9] Sephardic Jews popularized citrus cultivation in the Mediterranean region[18] in the 15th century and popularized the use of orange in baked goods. In addition to its Iberian flavors, the cake also has North African and Spanish roots.[19]
In popular culture
Clementine cake played a minor part in the plot of the 2013 film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, and was included in the opening scene of the film and in a couple of additional scenes.[2][12]
British celebrity chef Nigella Lawson has devised a recipe for clementine cake.[2][5]
References
- "Clementine Cake". San Francisco Chronicle. January 8, 2015. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Linn, Virginia (February 26, 2014). "The secret cake in 'Walter Mitty'". The Daily Herald. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Goldman, M. (2014). The Baker's Four Seasons: Baking by the Season, Harvest, and Occasion. Montreal, Canada: River Heart Press. pp. 270–272. ISBN 978-0-9865724-1-8.
- Watson, Molly (January 13, 2015). "Recipe: Clementine Cake". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Lawson, Nigella. "Clementine cake". Nigella Lawson. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- "Adorable Clementine Upside Down Cakes". The Huffington Post. March 18, 2013. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- McDonnell, Justin (February 18, 2015). "Kung Hei Fat Choy! Alternative ways to celebrate Chinese New Year". Time Out. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Killian, D. (2011). Death in a Difficult Position. A Mantra for Murder Mystery. Penguin Publishing Group. p. 206. ISBN 978-1-101-55111-0.
- Willoughby, John (March 28, 2014). "Clementine Cake Recipe". The New York Times. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Cook, Crystal & Pollock, Sandy (2011). The Casserole Queens Cookbook: Put Some Lovin' in Your Oven With 100 Easy One-Dish Recipes. New York: Clarkson Potter. pp. 176–177. ISBN 978-0-307-71785-6.
- "Clementine Cake With Cheesecake Cream: Lifestyles". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Associated Press. January 1, 1970. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Lindahl, Nancy (January 8, 2014). "Sweet Basil the Bee: Sweet, little Clementines go into an intriguing, flour-less cake". Chico Enterprise-Record. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- O'Sullivan, Lucinda (December 4, 2015). "What to eat when wheat is off the daily menu". Irish Independent. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Willoughby, John (April 15, 2014). "John Willoughby's Chocolate Glaze Recipe". The New York Times. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Page, Candace (February 12, 2015). "Taste test: What's the secret to great fudge sauce?". Burlington Free Press. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Browne, Miranda G. (2014). Bake Me a Cake as Fast as You Can: Over 100 super easy, fast and delicious recipes. London: Ebury Publishing. p. 169. ISBN 978-1-4464-8917-8.
- Breyer, Melissa (January 5, 2015). "23 surprising foods you can freeze and how to do it". Mother Nature Network. Retrieved December 4, 2015.
- Marks, Gil (2010). Encyclopedia of Jewish Food. Wiley.
- Colquhoun, Anna. "Sephardi Orange and Almond Cake". Culinary Anthropologist. Retrieved 28 September 2016.
Further reading
- Willoughby, John (April 15, 2014). "In the Kitchen With Clémentine and Ruth". The New York Times. Retrieved December 4, 2015.