Homemade Sicilian Orange Cake

A soft and moist Sicilian orange cake that you can make quick and easy at home. A bright orange flavor that you can obtain only if you’re using fresh oranges. Ideal desert if you have only one hour to put a cake on the table.

Let me add today a pinch of Sicilian atmosphere to your daily routine. This is a special Sicilian orange pie that you will get in love with. It is an incredibly simple and delicious cake recipe.

A light note of citrus, a crisp crust, a soft and tender dough, a pleasant and enticing aroma: this is how I can describe this orange cake.

When I first came across this recipe, one photo made my mouth water, let alone my feelings when I tried the Sicilian miracle! You and your family will fall in love with this seemingly simple recipe, just because it will delight your taste buds like no other cake.

So, why do you need to try this moist orange cake? Availability of ingredients. A small amount of time. And an unforgettable taste.

Are there any downsides to this pie?

I believe so. After you will try it, you can’t stop only on one slice. You will ask for more.

Most of all, this homemade Sicilian orange cake will appeal to children, as it has a pleasant sweetness and a fine taste of orange. In addition, they will be interested in participating in the cooking process.

Interested? Let’s get started!

What goes in the Sicilian Orange Cake

Here’s what you need to make the homemade orange cake:

Oranges. If you are ok with a bitter taste, then you will need only one whole big orange. If you want to avoid this bitter taste, but you still want to keep the rich flavor of the oranges, then you will need the orange zest from two big oranges.

All-purpose flour. 1 ¼ cup (150 grams).

Rice flour. 1 cup (125 grams) The original recipe is without rice flour, but I decided to add it to give it an extra texture to our cake. Or as an alternative, you can replace it with almond flour. These ingredients are optional ones. If you can’t find any of them, replace them with classic flour.

3 Eggs. Choose eggs that have an intense yellow yolk. This way you will get a more beautiful cake color.

Sugar. 1 ¼ cup (250 grams) I used the regular sugar, but if you want, you can replace it with brown sugar. It will provide a more caramelized flavor. You can also replace the sugar with any other sweetener you prefer to use. Just read the packaging of the sweetener to use the proportions indicated on the box. If you will want to replace the sugar with honey, use ⅔ of the cup.

Yogurt. 1 ½ cup (100 ml)

Melted butter. 4 tablespoons. (60 grams)

Baking Powder. 2 ½ teaspoons.

Olive Oil. 4 tbsp (60 ml) You can replace it with another vegetable oil. You could get an interesting taste using coconut oil. Or if you don’t want to use oil, replace it with butter.

Salt. ¼ teaspoon. Salt in cakes is just as important as sugar because it helps intensify flavors and tastes. Without salt, you will never get such a delicious cake.

Recipe for the Sicilian Orange Cake

Quick Tip: Put all the ingredients on table two to three hours before you start cooking them. This will make all the ingredients have the same room temperature. Which is very important for a cake.

When all of the ingredients will have the same room temperature, pour the eggs and sugar in the bowl and mix until you get a creamy mass.

Right after that, add also the yogurt into the composition.

In case if you are ok with the bitter taste, you will need only one orange on that step. If you want to avoid the bitter taste and to obtain a rich orange flavor, then you will need to grate the orange zest from two oranges (avoiding grating the “white layer” of the orange).

Next, peel and cut one orange into cubes and blend it.

It is necessary to blend it until you get a uniform consistency. Something similar as in the picture below:

Add the orange to the bowl.

Add salt, baking powder and incorporate these ingredients.

After that, add the flour and mix all the ingredients at the lowest speed.

Add the melted butter.

Immediately after butter, add the oil.

Mix all the ingredients well for the last time until you get a uniform mass.

After we have finished with the dough, we need to prepare the baking tray.

Cover the bottom of the tray with baking paper, and grease both the bottom and the walls of the tray with butter.

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Pour the dough into the baking tin and bake the cake for about 45-50 minutes.

In the end, you should get a similar result:

If you like Italian cakes, I also highly recommend taking a look at the Italian Torta Paradiso. It’s very easy to make, but it will surprise you with how delicious it is.

Recipe Card: