Tangarine and Cardamom Cake

The long needed Christmas and New Year's vacations are long over and we are now back to our daily routines. Madrid post-vacation is cold and wintery and I couldn't be happier as I love this kind of weather. For me this weather is synonymous with a laid back routine with time spent indoors seeking the comfort of a warm bed or the joy and warmth baking provides.

Speaking of comfort, what´s more comforting than a piece of cake with a hot cup of coffee or tea eaten alone or shared with close friends when it's raining outside.

I often combine the flavor of fruits with that of spices and there are combinations that work better than others. Cardamom and citrus is a winning combination that I often use in my baking. I would usually use oranges but this time I decided to change and try out tangerines. The result was just perfect.
With a strong flavor base and few key ingredients this cake is really easy to make and is perfect in the morning, afternoon or for these guilty moments of late night snacking.

The follwing ingredients are enough for a high cake using a 15cm cake pan, but 18 or 23 cm pans can aslo be used however you need to reduce the baking time.

For the cake you need:

• 2 large eggs at room temperature
• 100 g sugar
• 160 g flour
• 100 g tangerine purée (recipe follows)
• 50 g yogurt
• 1 tsp ground cardamom
• 70 melted butter
• 1 tsp baking powder and 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp cointreau (optional)
• pinch of salt

To make the tangerine purée just place 100 g of tangerine in a saucepan and cover with cold water and cook for about 20 minutes or until tender. Cool down, remove the pits (if present) and just process into purée.

To make the cake, combine flour, baking powder and soda, cardamom and salt in a bowl and set aside.
In another bowl, whisk the eggs with the cointreau then add the sugar gradually. Keep whisking until you have a pale and creamy mixture. Lower the speed of the mixer and add the melted butter, then the yogurt and the purée.
Turn off the mixer and fold in the flour mixture with a spatula or a large spoon.
Pour the batter in a greased pan and bake in a preheated oven (175C) for about 30-35 min or until a skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

You can serve the cake as it is, or you can add a simple frosting, by combining powdered sugar and some tangerine juice!

The vibrant and warm flavors of the cake are like a ray of sunshine in these wintery days, just what you need!