A Recipe from Sunset Cook Book of Favorite Recipes (1952)

About the Recipe

When my friend asked us to join her and her family for New Year’s Eve this year, I had one ask: can I bring dessert?

A good party is always a good excuse to try a new recipe. When I saw this little orange layer cake, I knew it would be perfect for our intimate gathering. It also would compliment the brownies that I knew another friend was bringing. And reader – it absolutely was.

A few little learnings to help you make this cake successfully:

• Make the cake in 7 or 8-inch layers. I did 8 inches, and I wish I had gone one size smaller.
• The recipe says to bake for about 20 minutes. In my oven, which usually runs cold, the layers baked for about 18 minutes before I pulled them out. That was probably a minute too long.
• I added fresh mandarin zest to the frosting. It was a little thing that made a massive difference in making the orange flavor pop.
• This frosting is outrageous. Perfect for a super chocolatey fudge cake.
• When you cut the butter into the frosting, take it right from the fridge. Cold butter is easier to cut with a pastry blender than warmer butter.

Other than that, this is a really simple, delicious cake. It was just the right amount of cake for our gathering of 10 adults. And decorating it was such fun. Happy New Year!

About the book

This book is a recent find at West End Antiques Mall in Richmond, VA. I don’t usually advocate for specific stores, but wow this one blew me away. A mid-century lover’s paradise!

The book itself is so well loved it’s falling apart at the seams. It’s a collection of recipes featured in Sunset Magazine. My favorite part is the dedication in the front. That’s me to a t! And I’m willing to bet that’s you as well (at least a little bit…).

The Recipe!

Ingredients:

Cake:
1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs, separated
1 t lemon extract
1/2 cup strained orange juice

Orange Butter Frosting:
4 T butter or margarine
2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
1 t vanilla
Hot orange juice (about 2 Tablespoons)
A little lemon extract and/or grated orange or lemon rind. 

Directions:

Cake:
Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Cream shortening and sugar together until fluffy; beat in well-beaten egg yolks, lemon extract, and orange juice; add sifted dry ingredients. Last, fold in stiffly beaten egg whites.

Pour into 2 greased layer pans (author’s note: I used 8″ pans, but 7″ pans will also work) and bake in a moderately hot oven (375*F) about 20 minutes (author’s note: about 17-18 minutes if you use 8″ layers). Remove from pans, cool on rack, and then spread with Orange Butter Frosting.

Orange Butter Frosting:
Blend butter thoroughly with sugar, using a pastry blender; add vanilla. Work in hot liquid and rind or extract until mixture is pliable and a little softer than you wish the finished frosting. Spread. 

The frosting becomes firm as it stands. This makes sufficient frosting for the tops and sides of 2 8-inch layers, the tops of 2 9-inch layers, or 2 dozen cup cakes.