Cooker & A Looker’s Flourless Jaffa Cake

So many exciting things happened while we were overseas, both at home and away. One of those exciting things was that my friend Amanda from Cooker and a Looker published her very own cookbook. How wonderful is that?! I was so excited I could have jived with a jelly baby but my enthusiasm was thwarted somewhat by the fact that we were on holidays and holidays are not for cooking on. Not for me anyway.

Amanda kindly sent me a copy of the book and I spent the rest of the holiday planning what I’d cook first when I got home. If you’ve ever visited Amanda’s blog, you’ll have a good idea of what her book has in store. You won’t find fancy pants recipes with ingredients lists as long as your arm, instead you will find honest to goodness, tried and tested recipes direct from Amanda’s farm table to yours.

The book has everything from soups and starters to family dinners and desserts and if you need to get your kitchen dazzle on, the effortless entertaining recipes will have you sorted. I’m a creature of habit and a bit of a weirdo though, because I always start cookbooks from the back. Do you know why? Because that’s where you usually find the baking bit and I’m happy to say Amanda’s book is no exception.

I was actually spoilt for choice in the “Benovelent Baking” section but I couldn’t go past this Flourless Jaffa Cake because when it comes to anything jaffa, resistance is futile.

This cake is deliciously light, yet marvellously moist – thanks to Amanda’s genius use of a foil tent – and the candied oranges give it some value added wow factor. Not only is this cake gluten free, it goes just as well after dinner for dessert as it does with a good old fashioned cup of tea. I took it to friends as an after dinner treat and everyone loved it. I think you’ll love it too.

Cooker & a Looker  is chock full of traditional recipes so  I’ve taken the liberty of  adding a Thermomix conversion for this recipe so everyone can have their cake and eat it. I did cheat a bit though, because I made the cake in the thermie and the orange slices on the stove! That said, if you don’t have time or the inclination for the candied orange slices, you can skip them altogether because this cake is stand alone delicious!

Oh, and just so you know, I’m not the only one who is loving Amanda’s book, it’s currently number 9 on Amazon Bestsellers, in an Eva Longorio and Anthony Bourdain sandwich. If you want to get your hands on the book, just click here.

Serves 8

Ingredients – Traditional

2 navel oranges

6 eggs

200g almond meal

250g  caster sugar

50g cocoa

1 teaspoon baking powder (use gluten free if needed)

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

FOR THE CANDIED ORANGE SLICES

1 1/2 cups water

1/2 cup sugar

1 navel orange, cut cross-wise into 5 mm slices

How to – Traditional

1. Place the whole oranges into a small saucepan. Cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Simmer for 2 hours. Top up the water as necessary.
2. Preheat oven to 180C / 170C fan-forced. Grease and line a 23cm springform pan. Make an aluminium foil tent for the tin (see notes.)
3. Cool and drain the oranges, remove the ends, quarter and place into a food processor and blend to an orange pulp. Add the eggs, almonds, sugar, cocoa, baking powder and bicarb to the processor and blitz until combined.
4. Pour the mixture into prepared tin, cover the tin with the tent and bake for approximately 45 minutes. Remove the tents and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes until a cake tester  inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
5. Leave the cake to cool in the tin on a cooling rack.
6. To serve, turn out onto a plate and top with candied orange slices.
7. To make the candied orange slices, combine the water and sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add the orange slices and cook over a moderate heat, turning them occasionally and very gently, until the liquid is reduced to a thin syrup and the oranges are translucent, about 30 minutes,

Ingredients – Thermomix

1 litre water (1000g)

2 small thin-skinned oranges, or 1 large (about 375g in weight)

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

200g almonds

250g  raw sugar

6 eggs

50g cocoa

How to – Thermomix

1. Place water into TM bowl. Insert the steaming basket and put the whole oranges into the basket. Cook for 45 minutes on Varoma temperature on speed 3. When the oranges are ready, set aside until cool enough to handle.
2. Preheat oven to 180C / 170C fan-forced. Grease and line a 23cm springform pan. Make an aluminium foil tent for the tin (see notes.)
3. When the oranges are cool, cut into quarters, remove the pips and cut off  the knobbly, gnarly bits of peel at either end.
4. Mill the raw sugar to caster sugar  for 3 seconds  on speed 9. Set aside.
5. Put the almonds into the TM bowl and mill for 10 seconds on speed 9. Add the remaining ingredients, including the sugar and the orange pieces to the TM bowl. Mix for 20 seconds  on speed 7.
6. Pour the mixture into prepared tin, cover the tin with the tent and bake for approximately 45 minutes. Remove the tents and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes until a cake tester  inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
7. Leave the cake to cool in the tin on a cooling rack.
8. To serve, turn out onto a plate and top with candied orange slices.
9. To make the candied orange slices, combine the water and sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Add the orange slices and cook over a moderate heat, turning them occasionally and very gently, until the liquid is reduced to a thin syrup and the oranges are translucent, about 30 minutes,