Orange Chocolate Cake with Blood Orange Buttercream Frosting

5 from 4 votes

Orange Chocolate Cake with Blood Orange Buttercream Frosting

If you’re someone who loves those foil-wrapped chocolate oranges in your Christmas stocking, you’re going to fall hard in love with this tasty dessert recipe. My Orange Chocolate Cake with Blood Orange Buttercream frosting is moist and deeply chocolatey with a swoosh of brightly acidic, perfectly unctious icing for a treat that just might be better than the candy it was based on.

Prep Time30

Cook Time35

Cooling time20

Total Time1 25

Course: Cake

Cuisine: American

Servings: Slices

Calories: 303kcal

Author: Emily Laurae

Equipment

Ingredients

Dark Chocolate Orange Cake

⅔ Cup All Purpose Flour
½ Cup Cocoa Powder
⅔ teaspoon Baking Soda
⅓ teaspoon Baking Powder
½ teaspoon Salt
⅓ Cup Buttermilk
2 tablespoon Neutral Oil grapeseed, Olive or Avocado Oil
1 Large Egg room temperature
⅔ Cup Brown Sugar packed
3 Tablespoons Orange zest
¼ Cup Dark Chocolate melted & cooled
⅓ Cup Espresso or coffee

Blood Orange Buttercream

3 Egg Whites
1 Cup Granulated Sugar
1 ⅓ Cup Unsalted Butter room temperature
¼ Cup Cooled blood orange juice reduction (simmer ½ cup of juice on medium low until ¼ remains)
Zest of 2 blood oranges

Garnish

Dried orange slices
Fresh organic & food safe flowers

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Dark Chocolate Cake

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a mixing bowl.
⅔ Cup All Purpose Flour, ½ Cup Cocoa Powder, ⅔ teaspoon Baking Soda, ⅓ teaspoon Baking Powder, ½ teaspoon Salt
In a separate bowl whisk together the buttermilk, oil, brown sugar, egg and orange zest until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix until fully incorporated.
⅓ Cup Buttermilk, 2 tablespoon Neutral Oil, 3 Tablespoons Orange zest, 1 Large Egg, ⅔ Cup Brown Sugar
Add the melted dark chocolate and coffee – then mix to combine.
¼ Cup Dark Chocolate, ⅓ Cup Espresso
Pour batter into a greased 8-inch cake pan and bake for 25-30 minutes. Make sure to check that the cake is fully baked by testing with a toothpick before removing it from the oven and allowing it to cool completely.

Blood Orange Buttercream

Add your sugar and egg whites to the bowl of a stand mixer and place over a saucepan of boiling water.
3 Egg Whites, 1 Cup Granulated Sugar
Make sure that your bowl is not touching the hot water! Your goal is to simply whisk the egg whites and sugar together over a gentle heat until the sugar has completely dissolved, then attach your bowl back to the standing mixer. The temperature should read 165 F before it’s ready to be removed from the heat.
Whisk mixture starting at a medium speed and gradually increase until soft peaks form and the mixture has cooled. Switch to using your paddle attachment, then start adding your butter one tablespoon at a time.
1 ⅓ Cup Unsalted Butter
When you’ve reached the point where the buttercream is glossy and smooth, turn the mixer speed back to low. Add blood orange reduction, and mix on low until combined, before finally mixing in the zest. Spread across the top of your cake, top with dried orange slices and flowers, and enjoy!
¼ Cup Cooled blood orange juice reduction, Zest of 2 blood oranges, Dried orange slices, Fresh organic & food safe flowers

Notes

EXPERT TIPS

Remember to preheat your oven before making your batter. Both baking soda and baking powder begin to react as soon as they touch liquid. If you wait too long before putting the cake in the oven, you’ll lose out on some of their lifting powers, resulting in a denser, chewier cake.
Layer on the garnish. Just because the cake itself isn’t layered doesn’t mean your decorations can’t be. I added a couple of different layers of toppings, starting with some finely chopped dark chocolate sprinkled around the edge. Then I added some dried orange slices of different colors and edible flowers for visual interest.
Roll your citrus before cutting. To ensure you get the most blood orange juice from your fruit, first give it a firm roll on the countertop for about 10-15 seconds before cutting into it.
Can I make this cake ahead of time? Absolutely! The orange chocolate cake can be made, cooled, wrapped well in plastic, and frozen for up to a month. The blood orange swiss meringue buttercream can be made up to a week in advance and refrigerated; just be sure to give it a good whip before frosting the cake.

Nutrition