5 Ingredient Whole Orange Cake (Gluten Free)
Recipe Key
This moist and delicious gluten free orange cake is bursting with flavor from whole oranges. It’s a crowd pleaser perfect for any celebration or as a fabulous treat with coffee or tea. You’ll love how easy it is to make in a food processor with only 5 ingredients.
Video How To Make This Recipe
The the orange flavor in this gluten free cake will blow your mind. It has a super moist, rich texture without butter or oil. The whole oranges give it a faint bitterness that pairs well with the caramel notes in the coconut sugar. Almond flour makes it naturally gluten free.
Why I Love This Gluten Free Orange Cake
- bursting with rich orange sweetness
- complex flavor with slightly bitter undertones
- sweetened with coconut sugar (no refined sugar)
- moist and dense
- only 5 ingredients
- easy to make in a food processor
- no oil or butter
- gluten free, dairy free, paleo
Ingredients You Need
The great thing about this cake is there are only 5 ingredients easy to find in your health foods store.
- Whole Oranges (about 1 pound) – I suggest organic since we’re using the rind. Choose a sweet, thin skinned orange, for the best taste. I like navel oranges or cara cara oranges. Choose oranges that are about the size of a baseball. If they are smaller use as many as you need to get to 1 pound.
- Coconut Sugar – has a mild, caramel-like flavor with a hint of toffee that pairs well with the slight bitterness of the orange rind. Maple sugar will also work.
- Pastured Eggs – contribute to the overall richness and flavor of the cake and helps maintain its shape and structure. Be sure they are at room temperature.
- Baking Powder – to help the cake rise.
- Almond Flour – gives the cake a nice nutty flavor. Almond meal will also work but the cake will have a more coarse texture. No substitutions.
The orange pulp adds a lot of moisture to the cake so you don’t need oil or butter.
Can I make it with lemons?
Unfortunately no, the lemon rind is too bitter. I tried it. I also made it with Meyer lemons and even though they are sweeter it was still too bitter.
Are Orange Peels Good For You?
Yes they are. The bioflavonoids found in the peels of citrus fruits (oranges and lemons) are some of the most potent antioxidants in nature. The antioxidants found in citrus bioflavonoids protect the phospholipid layer of the cell walls in the brain, respiratory and intestinal tracts. Read more about it here. 90% of the essential oils in orange peels are composed of limonene, a naturally occurring chemical that has anti-inflammatory properties and is beneficial for our skin.
How To Make This Whole Orange Cake
The whole fresh organic oranges are boiled and then processed into a tasty orange puree, then mixed with the rest of the ingredients. I use a food processor but a blender will also work. The orange scent that fills your kitchen as it bakes is heavenly! It’s a simple process, here are the basic steps:
Step 1- Boil the oranges 3 times – Place oranges in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil over medium high heat. Boil for 10 minutes and drain. Repeat twice. All together you’ll boil the oranges for 10 minutes 3 times. Let cool.
Step 2 – Chop the ranges – Cut off the ends so you just see the pulp. Cut into quarters and remove the seeds. Slice into thin triangles.
Step 3 – Process the oranges. Place sliced oranges in a food processor. Process on high for 4 x 10 second bursts, scraping down the sides in between, until it’s pureed into a thick puree with only a few visible bits of rind remaining. It does not need to be completely smooth.
Step 4 – Add in the eggs and coconut sugar. Process for 5 – 10 seconds until evenly combined. Scrape down the sides.
Step 5 – Add almond flour and baking powder. Process another 5 – 10 seconds until no more flour is visible. Don’t over process.
Step 6 – Bake – Pour into prepared cake pan. I use an 8” cake pan lined with a cake pan liner, or parchment paper. A spring form pan will also work. Bake at 325° for 50-60 minutes until the surface is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Step 6 – Let cool for 30 minutes in the cake pan. Remove from the pan and let cool 1 hour.
Ingrid’s Chef Tips
- Don’t peel the oranges. The flavor from the rind gives the cake a delightful mild bitterness. The pulp gives it a rich orange sweetness.
- Don’t over mix. Once you add the flour pulse only until no more flour is visible.
- Cook at 325.° This lower temperatures allows the middle to get fully baked without the top and sides browning too quickly.
- Let cool before removing from the pan and slicing. Let it cool in the cake pan for 30 minutes as it’ll be very delicate. The cake needs to be cooled for another hour before slicing, to firm up completely.
- Weigh your ingredients. Use a kitchen scale to weigh the ingredients. Weighing is easier and more accurate.
Decorating Suggestions
This gluten free whole orange cake is sweet and delicious served plain showing off its beautiful orange color.
If you want to give it some pretty finishes here are a few suggestions.
- Organic powdered sugar. Top it with a dusting of organic powdered sugar.
- Fresh oranges (in photos) – cut thin slices of oranges with rind on, then cut a slit almost to the middle. Then twist and place on the cake, as shown – it will hold itself in place.
- Orange rind swirls (in photos) – use a knife or zester to cut thin strips of orange rind. Orange part only, not the white pith. Twist them around a chopstick or spoon handle, leave for 10 minutes. It will hold it’s shape in loose curls as pictured.
- Orange Glaze – If you want to make the cake more festive you can drizzle the top with a simple orange glaze like the one on my Raspberry Scones (use orange juice instead of lemon).
Serving
- This whole orange cake is fantastic served as a morning treat or dessert with coffee or tea.
- Put a dollop of coconut whipped cream or plain yogurt on the side.
- It’s beautiful topped with any small edible flowers, if you can find them.
Storage
- To store: Cover the cake and store on the counter for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
- To freeze: Wrap the cake in plastic or keep it in an airtight container, then freeze for up to 2 months.
You’re going to love how easy and satisfying this recipe is.
More Gluten Free Cake Recipes
Here are a few of the easiest cakes from my blog. They are all dairy free and refined sugar free.
- Lemon Blueberry Cake – a delicious lemon almond cake layered with juicy blueberries.
- Paleo Apple Coffee Cake – a simple cake with a sweet crumb topping full of fresh apples and cinnamon.
- Nut Free Carrot Cake – A moist, sweet, nut free, egg free cake loaded with shredded carrots, topped with a dairy-free “buttercream” frosting.
- Flourless Chocolate Cake – this is a rich and elegant dessert easy to make and totally decadent.
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5 Ingredient Whole Orange Cake (Gluten Free)
This orange cake is made with whole oranges and has a super moist, rich texture. Made with almond flour, coconut sugar and eggs.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
- Category: Dessert, Snack
- Method: Process, Bake
- Cuisine: Paleo, Grain Free, Gluten Free, Dairy Free
Ingredients
- 1 pound organic oranges, (see ingredients for types) about 2 oranges *
- 1 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
- 6 large eggs, at room temp*
- 1 ¼ cups coconut sugar, 225 grams
- 2 ¾ cups almond flour, 308 grams
Instructions
For the Oranges
- Boil oranges: Place oranges in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring to the boil over medium high heat. Boil for 10 minutes and drain.
- Repeat twice: Put oranges back in the pot, cover with cold water and boil again for 10 minutes. Drain, then repeat again. All together you’ll boil the oranges for 10 minutes 3 times.
- Chop: Drain and rinse oranges. Let cool so you can handle them. Cut off the ends so you just see the pulp. Cut into quarters and remove the seeds. Slice into thin triangles. Let cool completely.
For the Cake Batter:
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line an 8” cake pan with parchment paper or cake pan liner.*
- Process the oranges: Place sliced oranges in a food processor. Process on high for 4 – 10 second bursts, scraping down the sides in between, until it’s pureed into a thick puree with only a few visible bits of rind remaining. It does not need to be completely smooth.
- Add in the eggs and coconut sugar. Process for 5 – 10 seconds until evenly combined. Scrape down the sides.
- Add almond flour and baking powder. Process another 5-10 seconds until no more flour is visible. Don’t over process.
- Pour into prepared cake pan. Bake 50-60 minutes until the surface is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Don’t let the sides get too brown.
- Let cool for 30 minutes in the cake pan. Remove from the pan by flipping it over onto a piece of parchment paper.
- Move the parchment paper with the cake to a cooling rack and let cool 1 hour.
- Store covered on the counter for 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
It’s hard to be exact with the oranges so anything close – if they weigh a little more, your cake will be a bit more moist. If they weigh a little less, that’s totally fine the cake is already super moist.
To quickly get eggs to room temperature, place them in a bowl of warm tap water (not hot) for about 5-10 minutes, or until they are no longer cold to the touch.
If using a cake pan liner grease the sides of the pan with coconut oil.