Clementine cake is a

cake Cake is a flour confection made from flour, sugar, and other ingredients, and is usually baked. In their oldest forms, cakes were modifications of bread, but cakes now cover a wide range of preparations that can be simple or elaborate, ...

flavored primarily with clementines. It may be topped with a sweet glaze or sauce, powdered sugar, honey and clementines, or

candied Candied fruit, also known as glacé fruit, is whole fruit, smaller pieces of fruit, or pieces of peel, placed in heated sugar syrup, which absorbs the moisture from within the fruit and eventually preserves it. Depending on the size and type o ...

clementines. It may originate from an orange cake in

Sephardic cuisine Sephardic Jewish cuisine is an assortment of cooking traditions that developed among the Sephardi Jews. Those of this Iberian origin who were dispersed in the Sephardic Diaspora ultimately became the Eastern Sephardim and North African Sep ...

. In popular culture, the cake played a minor part in the plot of the 2013 film ''The Secret Life of Walter Mitty''.

Preparation and variations

Clementine cake is prepared with

clementines A clementine (''Citrus × clementina'') is a tangor, a citrus fruit hybrid between a willowleaf mandarin orange ( ''C.'' × ''deliciosa'') and a sweet orange (''C. × sinensis''), named in honor of Clément Rodier, a French missionary who ...

, ground almonds or

almond meal Almond meal, almond flour or ground almond is made from ground sweet almonds. Almond flour is usually made with blanched almonds (no skin), whereas almond meal can be made with whole or blanched almonds. The consistency is more like corn meal tha ...

, flour, sugar, butter and eggs. Optional ingredients include orange juice, orange muscat, milk, white

dessert wine Dessert wines, sometimes called pudding wines in the United Kingdom, are sweet wines typically served with dessert. There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal ...

, or

Riesling Riesling (, ; ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling ...

wine,

orange oil Orange oil is an essential oil produced by cells within the rind of an orange fruit (''Citrus sinensis'' fruit). In contrast to most essential oils, it is extracted as a by-product of orange juice production by centrifugation, producing a cold-p ...

or tangerine oil (or both), almond extract and

vanilla extract Vanilla extract is a solution made by macerating and percolating vanilla pods in a solution of ethanol and water. It is considered an essential ingredient in many Western desserts, especially baked goods like cakes, cookies, brownies, and cupca ...

. Some variations exist, such as being prepared without the use of flour. It can also be prepared as an

upside-down cake An upside-down cake is a cake that is baked "upside-down" in a single pan, with its toppings at the bottom of the pan. When removed from the oven, the finished upside-down preparation is flipped over and de-panned onto a serving plate, thus "righ ...

. The cake can be prepared with clementines and/or clementine

zest Zest may refer to: Common usage * Zest (ingredient), the outer peel of a citrus fruit ** Zester, a tool for preparing zest ** Twist (cocktail garnish), a piece of zest * Zest (positive psychology), a component of character Brands * Zest (bran ...

mixed in the

batter Batter or batters may refer to: Common meanings * Batter (cooking), thin dough that can be easily poured into a pan * Batter (baseball), person whose turn it is to face the pitcher * Batter (cricket), a player who is currently batting * Batter ( ...

, with them atop the cake, such as in slices, and in both ways. The seeds and membrane of the clementine can be removed as part of the preparation process, or

seedless A seedless fruit is a fruit developed to possess no mature seeds. Since eating seedless fruits is generally easier and more convenient, they are considered commercially valuable. Most commercially produced seedless fruits have been developed from ...

clementines can be used. Whole, sliced clementines including the

peel Peel or Peeling may refer to: Places Australia * Peel (Western Australia) * Peel Island, Queensland *Peel, New South Wales * Peel River (New South Wales) Canada * Peel Parish, New Brunswick * Peel, New Brunswick, an unincorporated communi ...

, or peeled clementines can be used, and the clementines can be cooked before being used in the cake batter. The fruit can be chopped or blended using a food processor.

Candied Candied fruit, also known as glacé fruit, is whole fruit, smaller pieces of fruit, or pieces of peel, placed in heated sugar syrup, which absorbs the moisture from within the fruit and eventually preserves it. Depending on the size and type o ...

clementines can be used atop the cake or as a garnish. The almonds used can be toasted or blanched. Clementine cake can be finished with a sweet topping such as a sugar or chocolate glaze, a fudge or chocolate sauce, powdered sugar or honey. Clementine cake may be dense and moist, and its flavor may improve a day or more after preparation, because the ingredients intermingle and coalesce to enhance its flavor as it ages. After being cooked, the cake may be delicate and can

fall Autumn, also known as fall in American English and Canadian English, is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September ( Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Sout ...

if it is wiggled too much. After preparation, it can be frozen to preserve it. File:Vanilla clementine cake.jpg, alt=A slice of vanilla clementine cake, A slice of vanilla clementine cake File:Vanilla clementine cakes.jpg, alt=Vanilla clementine cake and cupcakes, Vanilla clementine cake and cupcakes

History

Clementines whole, peeled, half and sectioned

Clementine cake is probably related to a Sephardic orange cake. Sephardic Jews popularized citrus cultivation in the Mediterranean region in the 15th century and popularized the use of orange in baked goods. In addition to its Iberian flavors, the cake also has North African and Spanish roots.

In popular culture

Clementine cake played a minor part in the plot of the 2013 film ''

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty" (1939) is a short story by James Thurber. The most famous of Thurber's stories, it first appeared in ''The New Yorker'' on March 18, 1939, and was first collected in his book '' My World and Welcome to It'' (Har ...

'', and was included in the opening scene of the film and in a couple of additional scenes. British

celebrity chef A celebrity chef is a kitchen chef who has become a celebrity. Today, chefs often become celebrities by presenting cookery advice and demonstrations, usually through the media of television and radio, or in printed publications. While television ...

Nigella Lawson Nigella Lucy Lawson (born 6 January 1960) is an English food writer and television cook. She attended Godolphin and Latymer School, London. After graduating from the University of Oxford, where she was a member of Lady Margaret Hall, Lawson st ...

has devised a recipe for clementine cake.

Preparation and variations

History

In popular culture

See also

References

Further reading