Clementine cake made with whole clementines and almonds. Seriously delicious, naturally gluten-free and super easy to make. A must-bake for fans of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty 🙂
Love citrus? Make this Mary Berry Lemon Bundt Cake!
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I recently started listening to the audiobook of Nigella Lawson’s How to Eat, one of the my favorite cookbooks ever (can you even believe it is nearly 20 years old?).
Nigella herself narrates the book and it is a profoundly soothing listen, albeit one that makes you very hungry!
Listening to the book reminded me of Nigella’s Clementine Cake which I used to bake a lot when the book first came out.
Fans of the wonderful The Secret Life of Walter Mitty will be familiar this cake as it has a bit of a starring role in the movie.
This whole citrus cake is gluten-free, keeps well and is incredibly moist and fragrant. You can leave it plain or add a simple white icing if you like. Chocolate glaze is also lovely to create that Jaffa cake feel!
WHAT’S IN A CLEMENTINE CAKE?
A clementine cake is unique in that it uses whole clementines, skin and all, in the batter. The fruit is first boiled until softened, blitzed to a pulp and then folded into the cake batter.
There’s very few ingredients overall – just five! – the clementines, eggs, sugar, ground almonds and baking powder.
Although clementines are specified in the recipe, you can make this recipe with oranges, satsumas, mandarins and so on. It is also known as boiled orange cake or whole citrus cake.
I used seedless Miyagawa Satsuma mandarins this time as I love the contrast of their green skin and bright orange flesh!
HOW TO MAKE CLEMENTINE CAKE
Full measurements and instructions can be found on the printable recipe card at the bottom of the page. Please take a look at the steps and video before attempting this recipe!
Preheat the oven to 190ºC/170°C Fan (375ºF / 345°F fan-forced). Mist an 8 inch springform pan with cake release and line the bottom with baking paper. If you like, you can line the cake pan with thin citrus slices as I have done, but it’s not necessary.
Place the fruit in a microwave-safe container with a lid (ideally one with a vent). Pour water to almost cover them and pierce each fruit with a knife. Cook for 10 minutes or until the clementines are soft all the way through.
Slice in half and remove the seeds, if any. Discard the water and leave the fruit to cool slightly before blitzing in a food processor.
Combine the eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl and beat for a few minutes with a hand or stand mixer. Add the zest and then stir in the fruit pulp.
Sift the ground almonds and baking powder into the bowl and stir or beat to combine until the batter is smooth. Carefully pour the batter in the prepared cake pan and tap gently on the counter to release air bubbles. Bake for approximately 50 minutes, or up to an hour until the cake feels firm to the touch.
Run a knife around the edge of the cake pan to release the sides before carefully opening the spring form pan. Carefully invert onto a wire rack (this cake is quite fragile as it contains no gluten). Brush the cake with some marmalade to add a shiny glaze before serving.
Recipe Tips
This cake is dense and very moist but not overly sweet. If you prefer it sweeter you can add a simple icing made with icing sugar, orange juice and a splash of orange liqueur if you want a fancy touch!
You can also simply leave it plain or dust it with some icing sugar. It is not much of a looker but it will knock your socks off with its lovely zesty flavor.
Stor the cake For longer storage, leave off the whipped cream and simply wrap the cake in a covered container at room temperature for up to 3 days or ideally in the fridge for up to a week.
YOU WILL ALSO LIKE…
Clementine Cake
Equipment & Tools
Ingredients
To line cake tin (optional!)
- 2-3 seedless mandarins or oranges sliced into thin rounds
For the cake
- 4 medium clementines or mandarins 375g / 13 oz
- 250 g ( 1 ¼ cups) sugar
- 6 large eggs
- 250 g (2 ¼ cups) ground almonds
- 1 orange zest only (optional)
- 1 tsp baking powder
To glaze the cake
- 4 tbsp smooth marmalade slightly warm
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190ºC/170°C Fan (375ºF / 345°F fan-forced). Mist an 8 inch spring form pan with cake release and line the bottom with baking paper. If you like you can line the cake pan with thin citrus slices as I have done, but it’s not necessary.
- Scrub the clementines clean. Place the fruit in a microwave-safe container with a lid (ideally one with a vent). Pour water to almost cover them and pierce each fruit with a knife. Cook for 10 minutes or until the clementines are soft all the way through.
- Slice in half and remove the seeds, if any. Discard the water and leave the fruit to cool slightly before blitzing to a smooth pulp in a food processor.
- Combine the eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl and beat for a few minutes with a hand or stand mixer. Add the zest and then stir in the fruit pulp.
- Sift the ground almonds and baking powder into the bowl and stir or beat to combine until the batter is smooth. Carefully pour the batter in the prepared cake pan and tap gently on the counter to release air bubbles.
- Bake for approximately 50 minutes, or up to an hour until the cake feels firm to the touch. You might need to tend the cake with foil after 40 minutes if the cake is browning too quickly.
- Run a knife around the edge of the cake pan to release the sides before carefully opening the spring form pan. Carefully invert onto a wire rack (this cake is quite fragile as it contains no gluten). Brush the warm cake with the marmalade to add a shiny glaze before serving.
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