I don’t bake cakes often. But when I do, it’s something our family would enjoy. Like this light and moist five spice and orange bundt cake with sweet pistachio glaze. I always reach for the flavours of my ancestral cuisines in my cooking/baking. So when I developed this five spice and orange bundt cake, I wanted to use certain ingredients that are close to home, like five spice and oranges. It also has dried longan, a local Malaysian tropical fruit that is in the same family as lychees and rambutans. In Chinese food culture, we use dried longan in tonic soups together with red dates and goji berries. We believe it to replenish and improve blood circulation. But I find they go well with spices like cinnamon and nutmeg in baked goods.
Five Spice And Orange Bundt Cake with Pistachio Glaze
This bundt cake is light, moist and refreshing. Every bite has tiny candied orange peels! I used oil instead of butter so the cake has a tender crumb. It's perfect for afternoon tea or coffee. I'm a huge fan of Nordic Ware bundt tins, and I made this cake in their Heritage bundt tin!
Equipment
- 1 x 10-cup (2.5 litre capacity) bundt tin or 1 x 20cm/8-inch square cake tin about 2¼-inches deep
Ingredients
For the candied orange peel:
- Peel of 1 large orange
- 50 g granulated sugar
- 8 cups water
For the cake:
Dry ingredients:-
- 300 g cake flour sifted
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- A pinch of salt
- Zest of 1 orange
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg grated
- 2 1/2 tsp five spice powder only use cinnamon, cloves, fennel and star anise
- 100 g soft dark brown sugar
- 1/4 cup dried longan finely chopped
Wet ingredients:-
- 175 ml vegetable oil, like sunflower oil room temperature
- 3 eggs room temperature
- 200 ml fresh orange juice room temperature
For the pistachio glaze:
- 102 g whole milk
- 26 g pistachios shelled, skins removed and chopped
- 94 g icing sugar sifted
For garnishing:
- crushed pistachios
- cape gooseberries
- orange slices
Instructions
- Prepare your pistachios ahead of time. Tori Avey has some great tips on how to peel pistachios (click on the link below). If you bought unsalted/unroasted pistachios, you can roast them in the oven to boost their flavour.
- Peel 1 orange, then cut the peel into strips. Transfer to a pot, add 3 cups of water and boil the orange peel for 6-7 minutes. Discard the water and rinse the peel. Repeat the process one more time.
- In a pan, add 2 cups water and 1/4 cup sugar. Mix well and let it boil till the sugar gets dissolved completely. Add the boiled peels to this mixture and cook for 25-30 minutes on medium flame till there is almost no more water left in the pan. The peels should be nicely coated in thick sugar syrup.
- Spread the candied peels on a cooling rack with a tray at the bottom to allow excess sugar syrup drip. When the peels have cooled down, cut them into smaller pieces and set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 170°C. Grease your bundt tin with non-stick cooking spray/butter/oil.
- Whisk the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, five spice powder, salt and orange zest in a mixing bowl.
- In a separate bowl, measure the wet ingredients: prepare the oil, then crack in the eggs (one at a time). Beat for 2 minutes until well combined. Gently pour in the orange juice then stir well.
- In a bowl attached to your cake mixer, beat 50g brown sugar and 100g of the earlier dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, five spice, salt and orange zest) for 1 minute on medium speed until just combined.
- Gently trickle 1/4 cup of the wet ingredients mixture down the side of the mixing bowl into the batter, with the mixer on medium speed for 12 seconds until just incorporated.
- Repeat, adding the remaining sugar and dry and wet ingredients alternately for 12 seconds on low speed until just combined. Do not over-mix. Take your time, pausing the mixer in between each addition of dry and wet ingredients, otherwise you may end up with dense, gluey streaks in the middle of your cake due to rapid gluten formation.
- Finally, gently fold in the dried longan and candied orange peel and mix for 1 minute on medium speed until just incorporated.
- Pour the batter into your cake tin (it will be quite runny, but don’t worry). Tap the tin gently on your kitchen counter to burst any air bubbles.
- Place in the oven to bake for 45-50 minutes. When the cake is baked, it will come away from the sides of the tin and a cake tester should come out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
- To make the pistachio glaze, combine milk and pistachios in a saucepan. Simmer for 10 minutes on low fire, stirring from time to time. Remove from heat, cover and allow mixture to steep for 1 hour. Strain nuts from milk and discard.
- Measure icing sugar, then stir it into the milk a few tablespoons at a time. Stir well until mixture is smooth. Pour glaze over cooled cake.
Notes
Storage tips: Wrap the cake loosely in parchment paper and foil, then transfer to an airtight container. It can be kept in cool room temperature up to 1 week. If you're planning to freeze it, let the cake cool, then wrap it tightly in double layers of clingfilm and a layer of foil. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months. To defrost, unwrap and place on a wire rack and leave at room temperature for about 5 hours, then you can reheat it or simply enjoy it on its own.
If you made this dish, let me know by tagging @saveurmalaisie on Instagram!
