Orange poppyseed cake – Episode 1

Method

CAKE BASE 

1. Preheat your oven to 170 degrees Celsius.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add in the poppy seeds and mix through. Place to one side.
3. Add the orange zest to the sugar and rub it into the sugar using your fingers to release the oils and flavours into the sugar.
4. In a mixer, cream together the orange zest sugar, and Clover butter until light and fluffy.
5. One by one add in the eggs, ensuring to beat properly between each addition.
6. Add the vanilla to the buttermilk and mix through.
7. Alternating between the flour mix and buttermilk, gradually add in batches of 3. Ensuring you mix well between each addition.
8. Line your 3 x 20cm cake tins with baking paper and spray with non-stick spray.
9. Divide the cake mix equally between the 4 x 20cm cake tins.
10. Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 25 – 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
11. Remove from the oven and let cool in cake tin for at least 10 minutes to set, to ensure the cake does not break when it is removed.
12. Remove the cake from the tin after 10 min and allow to cool completely.

CITRUS SYRUP

1. To a medium pot, add your lemon juice, orange juice, water, and sugar together. Bring to a boil until all the sugar has dissolved.
2. Pour liquid into a flat deep-sided baking tray to cool rapidly. Once cooled to the touch, place into the fridge to cool completely. The syrup needs to be completely cooled to ensure it does not melt the buttercream icing once the cake is assembled.

BUTTERCREAM ICING

1. In a mixer, cream the Clover butter until light and fluffy.
2. Meanwhile, sift your icing sugar.
3. Once the butter has become light, fluffy, and lump-free, add your buttercream in 4 separate batches, mixing well in between each addition and making sure to scrape down the side and bottom of the bowl.
4. Once all the icing has been added, add a pinch of salt. This will help break the sweetness.
5. To the mixture add 30 – 60ml of orange juice.
6. Place this to the side at room temperature until you are ready to assemble the cake.

POPPY AND SESAME SEED BRITTLE 

1. Line a baking tray with a Silpat mat.
2. In a pan, toast your sesame seeds until lightly brown. Remove and do the same with your poppy seeds. The poppy seeds will start to pop once they are ready.
3. To a saucepan, add the water first and then the sugar.
4. On a very low heat, melt the sugar until completely clear. Stir the mixture once to loosen the sugar from the base of the saucepan. Ensure that the mixture does not boil at this stage as this will cause crystallisation of the sugar. (Tip: place a lid over the pot, this will help the sugar melt easier)
5. Once the sugar is completely melted, bring the heat up to medium-high. At this stage DO NOT mix this boiling mixture, as this will cause sugar crystals. Brush down the sides of the pot with a brush and some water to remove any crystals that have formed on the sides.
6. Once the mixture has become an amber colour, pour into a thin layer onto the silpat mat and sprinkle with the toasted poppy seed and sesame seed mix. Leave to cool completely.

ASSEMBLING THE CAKE

1. On a plate or cake board place your first layer of cooled cake.
2. Using a spoon, pour some of the citrus syrup over the sponge to moisten.
3. Spread a thin even layer of icing over the soaked cake layer.
4. Add the next layer and repeat steps 2 and 3 until all four layers have been assembled.
5. Spread a very thin layer of icing all over the outside of the cake

This step is not meant to be perfect, you need to see the cake. This is what you call a crumb coat and the purpose is to keep the cake crumbs in place with set icing before the final layer of icing is used to decorate the cake to ensure no crumbs are seen in your final cake décor.

6. Place the cake into the fridge for 10 min until the icing is set to touch.
7. Remove from fridge and add a thicker final layer of icing all around the cake either smoothing it out or creating fun patterns to your liking.
8. Break the brittle into pieces and decorate the cake however you like.
9. Serve and enjoy.