Greek Orange Cake

A delicious, vibrantly citrusy Greek cake, that screams its name at the first bite! The unique stand-in for flour? Phyllo pastry crumbled into the batter.

Greek orange Cake - Portokalopita

For the Batter:

1 cup plain yogurt

1 cup oil

1/4 cup melted butter

1 1/4 cups of sugar

1 1/4 cup orange juice

2 tablespoons baking powder

zest of 1 1/2 oranges

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

16 ounces filo dough (1 package), dried and crushed

4 medium sized eggs

1 - 2 medium oranges, cut into thin rounds

For the Syrup:  

·         2/3 cup fresh orange juice

·         1 cup water

·         1 1/4 cups sugar

·         zest from 1 large orange

·        1 cinnamon stick

-Unwrap the phyllo dough from the plastic sleeves, and place on a large work surface or on cookie sheets and pull off the layers then crumple them up lightly and spread out as much as possible. Leave at room temperature for about an hour until dough dries out. If in a hurry, spread crumpled sheets on baking sheets, in single layers and bake at 200 degrees about 20 minutes until dry. Continue until all the sheets have been dried. Set aside and allow them to cool. Crunch dried filo and rub in your hands until well crumbled into a large bowl.

-Prepare the syrup: Add all the syrup ingredients (orange juice, water, sugar, orange zest, and cinnamon stick) to a medium pot and bring to a boil. Simmer, without stirring, 5-7 minutes or until it thickens slightly. Set it aside to cool completely.

-In the meantime, mix the cake batter. Place the sugar and the eggs in a mixing bowl and beat about 5 minutes until thick and creamy. Add the oil and melted butter, yogurt, the orange juice and zest, vanilla extract and salt and mix well, about 2 minutes. Add the baking powder, and whisk lightly.

-Gradually add the crumbled dried phyllo into the batter while whisking, until all the crumbs are soaked.

-Using a pastry brush, butter the bottom and sides of a baking dish, about 8 X 12 inches in size. Pour the batter into the dish and smooth on top. Place 8 - 10 orange rounds decoratively on top of the batter. Bake in an oven preheated to 350 degress for 40 - 50 minutes until nicely colored and cooked through. Check if it is ready by poking a hole with a knife. If the knife comes out clean, then the cake is ready.

-With the handle end of a wooden spoon, poke holes in the hot cake at even intervals (about 15 holes in the total cake.) Slowly ladle the cold syrup over the hot cake and allow it to seep down into the holes and around the edges of the cake. Let sit for several hours or overnight (for best flavor). Store in the refrgierator.

-Greek orange cake is ideally served cold, not hot, so that it does not crumble. Serve with a dollop of sweetened whipped cream or a spoonful of vanilla ice cream! Serves 8 - 10

A moist cake full of fresh orange flavor. An orange lover’s delight!

If you look closely, you can see the crumbles of phyllo pastry in the finished product.

PERSNICKETY NOTES:

-The cake won’t necessarily absorb all the syrup but is delicious served in a small puddle of it. That is the traditional Greek way of serving it anyway. If you like it warm, let it cool and refrigerate for easier cutting but pop individual servings in the microwave for 20 seconds before eating.

-The original amount of syrup for this recipe seemed too much when compared with the Orange Cakes I have sampled in Greece, so I have cut it down. There should be some extra syrup that has not been absorbed by the cake that you can spoon over your individual serving. If you like more or less syrup, increase or decrease the ingredient amounts, accordingly.