Our easy orange cake recipe has been beloved by Australia’s Best Recipes community of home cooks for years. So I decided it was time to give it the festive treatment. I’ve transformed this easy and delicious citrus cake into a picture-perfect Christmas wreath, making it a great choice for end-of-year gatherings, morning teas and Christmas dessert tables. For an even quicker version, you can use Madeira cake instead of making the orange cake. And who doesn’t love a little shortcut at Christmas?
How to make my easy orange cake wreath recipe: key tips
Once you’ve made your easy orange loaf cake, it’s a simple matter of assembling your wreath with some pretty embellishments. We adorn this wreath with piped, zesty orange cream, dried orange slices and rosemary sprigs. If you’re hoping to get ahead, you can make the cream mixture up to 2 hours ahead. Then, just store in the fridge until required. You can pipe cream between each overlapping corner of cake to adhere the slices together, so it stays put on the plate, too. Assemble just before serving.
What goes into an easy orange cake wreath?
Aside from the starring foundation (easy orange loaf cake), there are two key components here. The first is the orange cream (which, we’ll admit, you’ll want to eat directly from the bowl). The citrus cream contains thickened cream, mascarpone, caster sugar, vanilla paste, fresh orange juice and orange zest. Then there’s the orange syrup, which combines caster sugar, fresh orange juice and orange peel. Finally, in come the dried orange slices and rosemary sprigs, to decorate. Dried orange slices are readily available in the supermarket baking aisle, or you can make your own. Et voilà! You have a photogenic centrepiece and dessert in one.
Love a wreath-shaped show-stopper? Try this savoury Christmas wreath recipe for devilled eggs.
Recipe and photography by recipe developer Greer Worsley.
Ingredients
- 1 orange loaf cake
- 300ml thickened cream
- 250g mascarpone
- 1/4 cup caster sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla paste
- 1 tsp finely grated orange zest
- 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
- Dried orange slices, to decorate
- Rosemary sprigs, to decorate
- Orange syrup
- 1/3 cup caster sugar
- 1/3 cup fresh orange juice
- 4 strips orange peel
Method
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Step 1Make orange cake without the icing. Allow to cool completely, then cut into 12 slices.
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Step 2In a stand mixer or using hand-held beaters, whip cream until soft peaks. Add mascarpone, sugar and vanilla, and continue beating until thick (do not over-beat). Add orange zest and juice, and beat well to combine.
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Step 3To make orange syrup, combine sugar and orange juice in a small saucepan. Carefully cut any pith from the orange peel, then slice into long thin julienned strips. Bring orange juice and sugar to the boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low, add julienned strips and simmer for 5 minutes or until thick. Set aside to cool.
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Step 4To assemble wreath, arrange cake slices slightly overlapping in a circle on a large board or platter. Place mascarpone mixture in a piping bag with a star nozzle and pipe rosettes onto the cake slices. You can use a couple of different nozzles to achieve some variety. Top some of the cream rosettes with pieces of candied orange peel from the syrup. Place whole and halved dried orange slices on top, and tuck some rosemary sprigs underneath. Finally, drizzle over the cooled orange syrup. Serve.
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