I Like Big Bundts 2013 - Orange Marmalade Jubilee Bundt Cake

Orange Marmalade Jubilee Bundt Cake

I Like Big Bundts 2013 (the lite edition)

It's that special time of year.

Days are shorter.

Leaves change color and fall off trees in some parts of the country.
Pumpkin Spice Lattes are poured at Starbucks.

And you start thinking about Thanksgiving.

But for me, it's Bundt season.

Because I cannot lie, I Like Big Bundts!

National Bundt Day is November 15th (I don't know who made up this food holiday, but I thank them for it) and I like to celebrate. In 2009, 2010, and 2011, I posted 30 days of Bundts to get you in the mood. I had to take last year off, and this year I'm going to try to do a "light" version with 15 days of Bundts leading up to the awesome National Bundt Day on November 15, 2013.

So much has changed since my first I LIKE BIG BUNDTS celebration (as always, thanks to my good friend JustJenn for coming up with the name and all the great graphics - you can purchase notecards and buttons here)... Bundts are everywhere now! Back in the day (boy, do I sound old), I wanted to promote the bundt as the best cake substance on the planet. Now I see Bundts on blogs, books, and in the best bakeries. Bundt love is awesometown. While Bundt love is now widespread, I still want to share with you my life-long love affair with the Bundt as the perfect baked good - little or no frosting, lots of cake, and perfect to share with friends and co-workers.

Just so you know, I'm highly disorganized this year. I usually have a bunch of lists, recipes and cookbooks all ready to go. This year...frazzled is the best way to describe things. So, I hope I can pull it off, but you'll forgive me if life (and a huge work project) gets in the way, right? 

As in the past, if you'd like to celebrate National Bundt Day on November 15th with me, I ask that you send along a photo of your Bundt and I'll post a round-up of the delicious bundts. Logistics of submission will be posted soon. [Update: Submission info here!]

To start this off, I want to show off my new Jubilee Bundt Pan from Nordic Ware. My BFF Dulcey tweeted me when she visited the Nordic Ware factory store in Minnesota. I knew I had to buy it. Isn't it pretty? By the way, I don't work for Nordic Ware but do recommend their pans (some of my pans can be found in this post).

Orange Marmalade Jubilee Bundt Cake

This recipe is from the wrapper off the Jubilee Bundt pan! It's an orange pound cake with lots of zest and topped with a glaze of orange juice and orange marmalade.

I used the Dorie Greenspan technique of rubbing the zest and sugar together to bring out the zest's oils and flavor. I used 4 oranges for the cake and glaze (you'll need to zest a couple of the oranges, and squeeze out a total of 3/4 cup of orange juice for the cake & glaze - I needed 4 small-medium, not too juicy oranges to get that yield). It's easy to make. The Jubilee pan has a 10-cup capacity and the batter rises to the top, but didn't go over.

As always, bake your bundt directly on the oven rack and never place a cookie sheet under it (air should flow through the hole in the center).

When I bought the Jubilee Bundt Pan, I also purchased Nordic Ware's cool Cake Lifter. It's this massive spatula to lift your Bundts. How did I live this long without one!??!?! It's fantastic. In the summer months, you can use it to fan yourself too. :)

Look at that great pattern! It's very pretty, no?


Here's a close up of the pattern. It looks good at all angles. Besides the original Bundt pan (12-cup capacity), I like the Heritage Pan (10-cup capacity) too. But now I think the Jubilee Bundt Pan (10 cup) might be moving up on the Heritage!

The crumb was very pound-cakey...tight with little bright orange zest throughout.

Do you include Bundt cakes in your regular baking rotation? I hope so! Come back tomorrow for another Bundt! - mary

Recipe: Orange Marmalade Jubilee Bundt Cake
Adapted from the package of the Nordic Ware "Orange Jubilee Cake"

3 cups (420 grams) all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 (500 grams) cups sugar
Zest of 2 oranges, finely grated
4 large eggs
1 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup fresh squeezed orange juice, strained with no pulp*

Glaze:
1/2 cup orange marmalade (I used Trader Joe's Seville Marmalade)
1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice, strained with no pulp*

*Depending on the size of your oranges, you may need 3-4 oranges to get this much juice. I needed 4 oranges total for this recipe.

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare a 10 or 12-cup Bundt pan by spraying it with Pam with Flour, or brushing it with melted butter and dusting it with flour. I used the beautiful Jubilee Bundt pan by Nordic Ware.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt.
4. In a small bowl, combine the sugar and orange zest. Rub the zest and sugar together to infuse the flavor into the sugar - the sugar will be a little damp.
5. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter with sugar & zest until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
6. Add eggs one at a time, beating 30-60 seconds after each addition. Scrap down the bowl and beat until it is light and fluffy, another 3-4 minutes.
7. Combine the buttermilk and orange juice in a measuring cup.
8. On slow speed, add 1/3 of the dry ingredients and alternate with the 1/2 the liquid. Start and end with the dry ingredients. Scrap down sides of the bowl.
9. Spoon batter into the Bundt pan. Bake for 60-70 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.

Glaze: Combine marmalade and orange juice in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil, reduce heat to a simmer, stirring occasionally until syrupy, about 3 minutes. Strain into a bowl, discarding the solids. Pour over or brush onto the cooled cake. Wait at least 10 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

 
Disclosure: No, I don't work for Nordic Ware - just a huge fan. However, if you buy things from the Amazon links, then I get a few cents as part of their affiliate program - thanks if you buy anything from the Amazon link!