Orange Ricotta Cake with Walnuts

There are times when I prefer baking homely cakes without the added fussiness of rich fillings and toppings. Who can resist a nice thick slice of homemade cake, to be enjoyed anytime of the day with a nice cup of freshly brewed coffee or tea, or put into lunch boxes and taken to work. Months have passed since I mentioned in an earlier post that I would share the recipe of a delicious cake I enjoyed while staying at the Tas Otel in Alacati. As the recipe for the orange cake “Lorlu Portakalli Tas Otel Keki” was printed in Turkish, the staff kindly penciled in the english translation.

The first time I made this cake I was a little confused about the cup measurements in english and using a “paket” of baking powder seemed somewhat excessive… a little googling was needed. The words “su bardagi” and a “cay bardagi” are both cups, one a measuring cup and the other a tea-cup… I’m assuming a turkish tea-cup and each holding different volumes. The “paket kabartma tozu” was referring to sachets of baking powder which hold a couple of teaspoons. The cheese Tatli lor (sweet cheese)  was not available to me so I used ricotta cheese instead.

I have adapted and modified the recipe to suit a loaf tin that I have, also weighed the ingredients and not used cups for measuring. When using jams and ricotta in recipes, I usually give them a quick stir to loosen them out a little before incorporating them into other ingredients. If you fancy being a complete domestic goddess you could make your own ricotta cheese to use with this cake recipe. I hope you enjoy this lovely cake as much as I have and each time I bake this cake I will have sweet memories of my stay in Alacati.

Orange Ricotta Cake with Walnuts

Ingredients:

• 60g butter, melted
• 100g castor sugar
• 1 egg
• zest of 1 orange
• 175g all-purpose flour
• 3/4  teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon of orange marmalade
• 50ml of fresh orange juice
• 50g walnuts, roughly chopped
• 100g ricotta cheese
• powdered sugar, for dusting (optional)

How to make:  Preheat the oven to  350°C/180°F/160°C Fan/Gas 4. Line the base of a 22cm x 11cm (internal measurements) loaf tin with non stick baking parchment.

Add the cooled butter, castor sugar, egg and orange zest into a mixing bowl, beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes or until thickened and lighter in colour.

Sieve the flour and baking powder into a bowl, add the vanilla extract, marmalade and orange juice, gently mix together until combined.  Stir in the ricotta cheese and half the walnuts. Using a spatula, scrape the contents of the bowl into the prepared baking tin. Level and sprinkle over the remaining walnuts.

Bake for about 40 minutes until risen and cooked through, a wooden toothpick should come out clean when inserted into the middle of the cake. Cool the cake for about 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire cooling rack. Dust over some powdered sugar before serving.