Eggless Chocolate Orange Cavity Cake … a refreshing take on Jaffa Cakes AND one of my favourite dessert cakes, the cavity cake I created this past summer. I made several popular versions of the cavity cake, each one more fun then the last. I have to admit, it’s now become a bit of an addiction! My latest one is this version with chocolate and orange jelly in a attempt to use up my last few jars of marmalade before the season arrives to bottle more batches!
It’s a simple, refreshing cake and reminds me of Jaffa Cakes that I relished while visiting the UK often in the late 1980’s through the 1990’s. The nostalgia really came alive with this homemade marmalade and chocolate pairing, my idea of a cavity cake intriguing, different and fun! Did I mention it’s quite a simple idea really?
With the weather changing, this Eggless Chocolate Orange Cavity Cake is a really nice burst of flavour to brighten your dessert table. With the last of my homemade bitter orange marmalade jars on the shelf, I knew what I wanted to use them for.
The marmalade recipe is on my blog, one that I make every year. It uses calamondins / bitter tangerines / kumquats / narangis or ornamental oranges as referred to locally tangerines with just sugar and water. One of my favourite ways to use produce from my little tree, and sometimes produce from trees in the neighbourhood.
This cake tastes beautiful, and offers an inviting citrus overload. The eggless sponge is flavoured with orange zest and is light and delightful. The cavity has layers of chocolate and vanilla cream, finished off with an interesting marmalade jelly and fresh orange wedges. All in all a delightful take on yet another variation of my cavity cake. Take a look at the assembly here.
Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram @passionateaboutbaking if you make this, or any other recipe from the blog. I’d love to see it!
Chocolate Orange Cavity Cake Eggless
Equipment
- Oven
- bowls
- 4" baking tin/dessert ring
- 2" dessert ring
- bowls
- whisk
- spatula
- Ping bag
- Nozzle
Ingredients
Eggless orange sponge
- 110 g buttermilk
- 30 g oil light olive
- 60 g sugar castor
- Zest of 1/2 orange
- 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- A pinch salt
- 100 g all-purpose flour
Syrup to moisten
- 25 ml Cointreau or orange juice
- 1 tbsp bitter orange marmalade
Chocolate ganache
- 100 g cream Amul fresh
- 75 g dark chocolate 54% couverture
Orange jelly
- 50 g bitter orange marmalade
- 25 g water
- 1/2 tsp agar agar powder
Vanilla pastry cream
- 50 g cream Amul fresh
- 30 g ghee clarified butter
- 1/2 tbsp cornflour
- 1/2 tsp agar agar powder
- 1/4 vanilla bean scraped
- 15 g sugar
Instructions
Eggless orange sponge
- Preheat the oven to 180C. Lightly grease one 4″ baking tin.
- Whisk together all the ingredients in a bowl until smooth.
- Transfer batter to the prepared tin and bake for 35-40 minutes until light golden brown, and the tester comes out clean. Cool completely, then level out.
- Once the cake is cool, take a 2″ dessert ring, centralise it and few push it all the way through. Gently remove the cut out and using a spatula/flat spoon, transfer the ring gently to your serving platter. Slice a 1 cm layer from the cut out for the base. Immediately return to the cut out and push into place.
- Syrup to moisten
- Stir together
Chocolate ganache {filling & frosting}
- Heat the cream to very hot. add the chocolate and leave it to stand for 5-10 minutes, until the chocolate softens. Whisk until smooth.
- Leave to cool and then fill cavity with 50g of ganache.
- Pipe the remainder over the top once the ganache reaches piping consistency.
Vanilla pastry cream
- Whisk everything together in a saucepan and simmer over very low heat until thickened, stirring constantly. Alternatively, cook in microwave at full power at 30 second intervals, whisking well between each. It will take approximately 3-4 goes to thicken. Whisk well and cool, stirring now and then. Whisk before using
Orange jelly
- Whisk together all three in a saucepan and simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring often.
- Cool and pour over vanilla cream layer while still pourable. This can be reheated gently to get the correct consistency.
Assemble
- Moisten the cake with the syrup.
- Add 50g chocolate ganache as the first layer. Place in freezer for 20 minutes.
- Top with vanilla cream. Place in freezer for 20 minutes.
- Pour over the jelly and leave to set for 2-3 hours.
- Pipe over with remaining ganache.
