Mandarin-Oragne Cake

Cake:
1 (18 1/4 oz.) box  orange cake mix
1 (3 oz.) box orange gelatin
1 (10 oz.) can mandarin oranges, drained and pureed
4 large eggs
1/2 cup canola oil
1/4 cup water
1/2 teaspoon orange extract
For filling:  1/2 (13.2 oz.) jar chilled orange marmalade

Frosting:
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 (8 oz.) package cream cheese, softened
4 ozs. mandarin oranges, drained and pureed
1/2 teaspoon orange extract
6-7 cups, confectioners' sugar
For garnish:  Fresh orange peel curls and sugar flowers (made by dipping pesticide-free petals in 1 beaten egg white and 1 teaspoon water and sprinkling with sugar and drying on wire racks overnight.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly spray 3 round 8 inch or 2 9-inch cake pans with non-stick baking spray with flour and set aside.

CAKE:  In a large bowl, combine cake mix and gelatin.   Add 10 ozs. pureed mandarin oranges, eggs, oil, water and extract.   Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth.   Pour equal amounts of batter into prepared cake pans and bake 20 minutes or until wooded toothpick comes out of center with few clinging crumbs attached.   Cool in pans for 10 minutes, turn out on cooling racks and cool an additional 20 minutes.   Place individual layers in freezer while prepared the frosting.

FROSTING:  In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed until creamy.   Add 4 ozs. pureed mandarin oranges and extract.   Add confections' sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating well after each addition.   Beat until smooth, if frosting is too stiff, add 1 tablespoon milk at a time until it reaches a desirable spreading consistency.

TO ASSEMBLE:  Remove cake layers from freezer and place layers on serving plate with a generous amount of orange marmalade or frosting between cake layers.   Spread frosting on the sides and top of cake.  Yield:  12 -16 servings.

Cynthia B. Blackwell, Houlka, MS
Mississipi Magazine
May/June 2010