adapted from: Cooking With Paula Deen (March/April 2012 Issue)
1 c. butter, softened
2 c. sugar
2 tsp. orange zest
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
4 large eggs
3 c. all-purpose flour
1 Tbl. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/4 c. buttermilk
Zesty-Sweet Curd Filling (recipe follows)
Orange Buttermilk Frosting (recipe follows)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and lightly flour 3 (9-inch) cake pans. In a large bowl, beat butter, sugar, orange zest, vanilla and salt at medium speed with a mixer until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and baking soda. Add flour mixture alternately with buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Divide batter evenly among prepared cake pans. Bake for 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pans for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool completely on wire rack. Spread curd filling between layers. Spread orange buttermilk frosting on top and sides of cake. Store, covered, in refrigerator up to 3-days.
Zesty-Sweet Curd Filling
*I did not make this recipe, instead I made 1/2 batch of this microwave curd recipe and used orange juice instead of lemon juice and I added 1/8 tsp. of almond extract. I still wanted to post this recipe incase anyone wanted to try it.
1 1/2 tsp. unflavored gelatin
2 Tbl. fresh lemon juice
3/4 c. sugar
1 Tbl. orange zest
1/2 c. fresh orange juice
4 egg yolks
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. almond extract
6 Tbl. butter, cut into small pieces
In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over lemon juice. Let stand for 10 minutes or until softened. In a medium saucepan, whisk together sugar, orange zest, orange juice, egg yolks, salt and almond extract. Add butter and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until curd has thickened, about 8 minutes. remove from heat and whisk in the gelatin mixture until smooth. Transfer curd to a bowl and place plastic wrap directly on surface of curd; refrigerate at least 8 hours or until ready to use. Yield: about 1 cup
Orange Buttermilk Frosting
1 c. butter, softened
1 tsp. orange zest
6 c. powdered sugar
3-4 Tbl. buttermilk, plus more if needed
juice of 1-2 oranges, to taste
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract, opt.
orange food coloring paste, opt.
In a large bowl, beat butter and orange zest at medium speed with a mixer until creamy. Gradually add half of the powdered sugar, beating until smooth. Add buttermilk, orange juice, vanilla and almond extracts and beat until smooth. Add remaining powdered sugar, beating until smooth. Add more buttermilk if frosting is too thick. Tint frosting with orange food coloring paste, beating to reach desired color.
Jenn's Notes: I did not have 3 (9-inch) cake pans, so I divided the batter between two pans and baked them for 25-27 minutes. I cut each layer in half, making four layers. I only put curd filling over one layer and I actually preferred it WITHOUT the curd filling. After sitting in the fridge for a few hours, the orange flavor intensifies and it is super orangey.