Not So Itty-Bitty, Teenie-Weenie Polka-Dot Cake
Leopard print may be so Victoria’s Secret.
And camouflage so divisive and boldly statement-oriented.
But polka dots? Who doesn’t love the whimsy of big, bright, carefree circles covering anything and everything?
Especially when it’s crowning the top of this clever cake.
“Essence of Orange-Chocolate Wafer Cake” is from Coffee Cakes: Simple, Sweet and Savory” (Chronicle Books) by Palo Alto food writer, Lou Seibert Pappas.
It’s a super moist and dense, but tender, cake strewn with bittersweet chocolate wafers to create a fun polka-dot pattern.
I used the new TCHOPro Organic Baking Drops (66 Percent Cacao), which I recently got a sample of. The chocolate discs with the deep, pronounced flavor are $8.99 for an 8-ounce bag. E. Guittard also makes great chocolate wafers.
Besides its look, the other unusual thing about this cake? It includes one whole orange. Yup, rind, flesh, pith and all — just minus the seeds. It also includes golden raisins, but you’d never know they were there.
That’s because the orange and the raisins get pulverized in the food processor until finely ground. This sticky paste is what gives the cake its moistness. The mixture is combined with butter, sugar, eggs, flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and plain yogurt or buttermilk.
Chocolate discs are stirred into the batter before being poured into the cake pan. Then, more chocolate discs are laid over the top.
My cake took a little longer than the specified 40 minutes to bake (but I have a gas oven, too). If yours cake does, too, and it starts to brown too much, just tent it with foil to allow it to continue baking a few minutes more.
If you like candied orange rinds dipped in dark chocolate, you’ll love this cake. It tastes just like that, with a very gutsy orange flavor.
I think the cake tastes best the same day it’s made, when it’s still a little warm. But if you have leftovers, just do what I did — enjoy a slice the next day after nuking it in the microwave for a couple of seconds until the chocolate gets melty good again.
A chocolate polka-dot cake? It’s guaranteed to bring out the kid in anyone and everyone.
Essence of Orange-Chocolate Wafer Cake
(Makes one 10-inch cake; serves 10 to 12)
1 large orange, scrubbed
1 cup golden raisins
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup low-fat plain yogurt or buttermilk
1 cup (8 ounces) bittersweet chocolate wafers or chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 10-inch springform pan or 9-inch square pan.
Remove a thin slice from teh stem end of the orange and cut the fruit into eighths, leaving the peel on. In a food processor, combine the orange segments and raisins and process until finely ground.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar with a wooden spoon or an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well. Mix in the orange mixture. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir to blend. Add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternating with yogurt or buttermilk in 2 increments, beating until blended. Reserve 1/4 cup of the chocolate for topping and mix in the remainder into the batter. Spread evenly in the prepared pan. Sprinkle the reserved chocolate evenly over the top.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until cake is golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then remove the pan sides. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature, cut into wedges.
From “Coffee Cakes: Simple, Sweet and Savory” by Lou Seibert Pappas
More Orange Tastes: Pinched Orange Macaroons
More Orange Tastes: Orange Butter Cookies
More Orange Tastes: Braised Pork with Orange and Fennel
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Thursday, 4. March 2010 14:58
this cake looks awesome!!! I want a slice with some tea right now.
Thursday, 4. March 2010 15:00
I delicious looking little cake! I’d love a slice of it with my coffee…
Cheers,
Rosa
Thursday, 4. March 2010 15:43
What a fun cake! Reminds me of that kid’s show with the oversized stuffed animal in a polka dot costume that I was forced to watch while babysitting my brother.
I guess I better start look for those chocolate buttons!
Thursday, 4. March 2010 15:45
Maybe the perfect cake for my upcoming limoncello brewing party! Thanks for sharing it!
Thursday, 4. March 2010 16:39
Orange and chocolate is one of my favorite flavor combinations. Without having tasted the cake, I already know it cannot be anything but delicious. People should forget about Victoria’s Secret and start wearing this cute cake. I’m just sayin’.
Thursday, 4. March 2010 17:51
Not only is the cake, but the plate and the recipe name are all so well paired.
Thursday, 4. March 2010 18:12
Yum! I wish I could bake this cake BUT, no blender to blend up orange and raisins AND no chocolate wafers. Sigh…maybe a care package from you? (hopefully pleading…)
Thursday, 4. March 2010 18:15
Annie: I’d Fed-Ex it to you, but I’d have to pack it all with plenty of ice for that blazing climate you have there.
Thursday, 4. March 2010 18:48
Delicious looking cake. Chocolate is my weak spot. Since you pulverize the whole orange, do you taste some bitterness from the pith? Just curious.
Thursday, 4. March 2010 19:46
It’s recipes like this that make me not care that I can get out-of-season-and-nowhere-near-local foods. A whole orange and chocolate dots make this a must-make cake!
Thursday, 4. March 2010 20:57
Tuty: Actually, you do taste a whisper of bitterness from the pith, but I like it. It makes the orange flavor more complex and real — less one dimensional.
Thursday, 4. March 2010 21:22
There’s a flourless, butterless cake recipe that requires blending an entire orange to a pulp. The sweet and bitter flavors work really nice. It’s cool to see another cake using that technique. Oh, and of course the orange chocolate combination in the cake is perfect.
Thursday, 4. March 2010 21:26
Hahah! So cute! This is one adorable (and expensive!) cake indeed!
Thursday, 4. March 2010 22:08
I love the combination of orange and chocolate. And the cake is so pretty! Almost makes me want to try to bake again (which I really shouldn’t since I can’t follow a recipe…)…
Friday, 5. March 2010 7:31
So gorgeous with the polka dots and I love the chocolate-orange flavor!
Friday, 5. March 2010 10:45
What a gorgeous cake! I’ll have to take a look for this cookbook, sounds fun.
Friday, 5. March 2010 13:04
i don’t go into public with polka dots on my clothes, but i sure as shootin’ don’t mind them on my cake. this is a fun and undoubtedly tasty cake, carolyn–kudos!
Friday, 5. March 2010 14:39
First, I love the polka dots! Second, the golden raisins are genius. I’ve made a cake before with whole, pulverized oranges, and the sweetness from the raisins would have been a great addition. Great-looking cake!
Saturday, 6. March 2010 14:52
Oh. My. Heavens. That looks absolutely divine. I’m sort of overwhelmed by it. I send this recipe instantly to Bruce–with a note to make this instantly please please please please. Gotta get those Guittard baking discs, too.
Sunday, 7. March 2010 9:02
Oh, I love polka dots, especially when they are on a cake! So cute!
Sunday, 7. March 2010 14:56
i love this idea using the chocolate melts – the flavors sound wonderful too
Thursday, 15. April 2010 20:40
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Friday, 18. November 2011 11:32
I made this last night for a work birthday party and it’s REALLY GOOD! I used Whole Foods 64% paves for the top, and since my birthday person loves chocolate, a full cup of chocolate chips for the cake. I baked it for about 41 minutes.