Recipe - Fondant a la Orange (Parisian Orange Cake)

A very special birthday is coming up in my family and my husband and I, as culinary school graduates, have been elected to make the birthday cake. We wanted something different from the usual white or chocolate cakes and the "birthday boy," in this case, is inordinately fond of oranges so we decided to make this luscious Parisian orange cake. Yes, it is a very popular cake in Paris. My husband and I first tasted it there and we've never forgotten how wonderful it was. It's a very easy cake to make and it's more festive than one would think, just glancing at the recipe. We're not sure yet how we're going to decorate it, but we'll use some fresh or edible flowers as well as orange slices.

Fondant à l'Orange (Parisian Orange Cake)

Ingredients:

3 eggs
3/4 cup (6 oz.) of sugar
2/3 cup (6 oz.) of unsalted butter
1/2 cup (3 oz.) of flour
3 oz of corn starch flour (or fine flour)
2 juiced and zested oranges
1 teaspoon of baking powder
2 tablespoons of orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier)
1 orange for decorating

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In bowl beat eggs.

3. Stir in sugar, flours, melted butter and orange zest.

4. Pour into 9" greased cake pan and bake for 40 minutes at 350 degrees F, or when a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

5. Unmold when still warm and sprinkle with orange juice mixed with Orange Liqueur.

6. Slice an orange thinly for decoration.

Serves 8

Enjoy!