Citrus Layer Cake With Orange and Chocolate Frosting

By Sara Bonisteel

Updated Aug. 3, 2022

Citrus Layer Cake With Orange and Chocolate Frosting
Sara Bonisteel/The New York Times
Total Time
1 hour, plus cooling
Rating
4(464)
Comments
Read comments

This cake appeared in The Times in 1954 as Halloween Cake, the centerpiece for a children’s party. When you strip away the original instructions for decoration (dyed yellow frosting and a black cat of piped chocolate), you’re left with a luscious citrus cake that works for any occasion, All Hallows’ Eve included.

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Ingredients

Yield:10-12 servings

    For the Cake

    • ½cup/113 grams unsalted butter, plus more for greasing pans
    • 2¼cups/270 grams cake flour
    • 1tablespoon/14 grams double-acting baking powder
    • 1teaspoon/6 grams salt
    • 1½cups /300 grams sugar
    • 1tablespoon/18 grams orange zest (from 2 oranges)
    • 1teaspoon/3 grams lemon zest (from 1 lemon)
    • 1cup/237 milliliters whole milk
    • 2eggs

    For the Frosting

    • 4tablespoons/61 grams unsalted butter, at room temperature
    • 1pound/453 grams confectioners sugar
    • 1pasteurized egg
    • 2tablespoons/30 milliliters whole milk
    • ½teaspoon/2.5 milliliters orange extract
    • ¼teaspoon/1 gram salt
    • 1ounce unsweetened chocolate/29 grams, melted
    • ½cup/100 grams chocolate chips or candy corn, finely chopped (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (12 servings)

481 calories; 15 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 84 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 64 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 337 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease two nine-inch round pans, line bottoms with parchment paper and grease the paper. In a bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt and sugar.

  2. Step 2

    In a separate bowl, cream butter and grated orange and lemon zests. Sift dry ingredients into creamed butter and add about ¾ cup (177 milliliters) milk. Mix until flour is dampened then beat on low speed for 2 minutes. Add remaining milk and eggs and beat on low for 1 minute more.

  3. Step 3

    Divide batter between two pans and smooth the top. Bake for 25 minutes or until the cake rebounds to touch when pressed.

  4. Step 4

    Cool cake in pans on cooling rack for 10 minutes, and then remove from pan. Discard parchment paper and turn cakes right side up on racks. Let cool to room temperature.

  5. Step 5

    Meanwhile, make the frosting: Cream butter and gradually add about a third of the confectioners sugar, blending well after each addition. Add pasteurized egg, then remaining sugar and milk, using enough liquid to give a good spreading consistency. Add orange extract and salt and blend thoroughly.

  6. Step 6

    Remove ½ cup of frosting to a small bowl and stir in melted chocolate. Cover with a damp cloth or paper towel and save for decorating cake. Place one round on cake plate and spread with orange frosting. Sprinkle with chopped chocolate or candy corn, if using. Top with second cake layer. Frost sides from top edge down over the sides. Spread remaining orange frosting on top and spread to edge. Pipe chocolate frosting. Let stand till frosting is dry.

Tip
  • This recipe will make 24 cupcakes. Bake at 375 degrees for 12 minutes.

Ratings

4 out of 5
464 user ratings
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Comments

Sara Bonisteel

It gives the frosting extra sheen and helps it set. If you choose to omit the egg, you might want to use heavy cream instead of milk for the frosting and increase the amount by a tablespoon or two.

Juliet Jones

I had some homemade lemon curd I needed to use up, and I was looking for a simple layer cake to put it in. This fit the bill. Quick and easy to make, and delicious with lemon curd. I did not make any of the frosting, but put raspberries on top of the lemon curd, and served with a dollop of whipped cream on the side. Otherwise, the cake by itself is a little on the heavy/dry side.

Andrea

Is the egg necessary for the frosting?

Delicious!

I saw the reviews that the cake was dry so we made a quick syrup with a 1/2 oz curaçao, 1/4 cup of water and 2 tsp of sugar and soaked a few slices of cake and WOW - it truly took the flavors up a notch. In the future, I’d double or triple the recipe and do that for the whole cake. I also did almond extract instead of orange extract in the frosting and it was a lovely balanced flavor to the citrus in the cake. This was a fun bake, I will make it again!

Cassie Morse

What is a pasteurized egg? We’re farmers and we raise our own layer chickens, but we’ve never heard of a pasteurized egg.

kurt rohde

For the frosting, I did not use the egg or the milk or the orange flavoring. Rather, I used the zest from a large orange, and substituted the juice from the same orange plus the juice from half a lemon for the liquid. Everything else was the same and the frosting was citrusy, zesty, and perfectly spreadable and delicious.

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