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    Home » Recipes » Cakes + Cupcakes

    Orange Cake

    Published: Jun 1, 2018 · Modified: Dec 9, 2020 by Melissa Stadler · This post may contain affiliate links · 116 Comments

    21450 shares
    Jump to Recipe

    Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    Best Orange Cake

    A moist, tender fresh orange cake with a sweet orange cream cheese frosting. How to make the perfect orange cake!

    Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    Oh, how I love baking cakes. Since my kids were little, I always let them choose their ultimate cake flavor. They would come up with some highly creative, interesting ideas! Since my daughter loves all things fruit, she always asks for a fresh fruit cake.

    She was turning 10 and requested a homemade orange cake with orange cream cheese frosting. I emailed my sister-in-law, who is an incredible cake baker, and she sent over this recipe. I have tweaked it over the years but it the perfect orange cake recipe.

    Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    This fluffy Orange Cake made with fresh orange juice and orange zest gives it that perfect amount of orange flavor. The frosting is a combination of sweet cream butter, cream cheese, powdered sugar, and orange zest. You can completely cover the cake with frosting for a traditional cake or if you love the look of a naked cake, just do a nice "crumb coat" on the outside of the cake. This makes a beautiful naked orange cake!

    Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    To make this Orange Cake extra special, I used a Blood Orange Olive Oil from the Queen Creek Olive Oil. This infuses the cake with a light fragrant blood orange flavor. You can buy straight from their website HERE.

    Queen Creek Olive Mill Blood Orange Olive Oil. Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    Tips for making the Best Orange Cake:

    1. Start with the dry ingredients. Stir together the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. The two leavening agents – baking soda and baking powder – give the cake a nice rise.
    2. Adding Oil makes the orange cake extra moist. You can use extra-virgin olive oil, canola oil, vegetable oil, or coconut oil. My favorite thing to use is the Blood Orange Olive Oil from the Queen Creek Olive Oil. You can find it HERE.
    3. Use Orange Juice and Fresh Orange Zest to impart orange flavor into the cake. This gives it an all-natural orange flavor. A zester is an essential tool in the kitchen to ensure you only get the orange peel, instead of the bitter white rind.
    4. Sour Cream helps to create a perfect texture. By using sour cream or buttermilk, it creates a tender crumb.
    5. Bake just until a toothpick comes out clean in the center of the cake. If you want the cake to be extra moist, you may brush the layers with a simple syrup, which is a water-sugar syrup.
    6. Once the cakes are cool, frost with homemade orange frosting. The frosting is made by whipping butter and cream cheese for 4 minutes until light and fluffy. Add powdered sugar, orange juice, and orange zest.

    Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    MORE FAVORITE CAKE RECIPES FROM MODERN HONEY:

    • LEMON Olive Oil Cake
    • VANILLA Cupcakes
    • YELLOW Cake with Chocolate Frosting
    • Love at First Sight CHOCOLATE Cake 
    • Chocolate RASPBERRY Cake 
    • COCONUT Cake 
    • RED VELVET Cake
    • Jeff's Best BANANA Cake 
    • Southern CARAMEL Cake 
    • BERRY Chantilly Cream Cake 

    Click to find some of my favorite cake pans -- 8-inch cake pan and 9-inch cake pan.

    Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    Orange Cake

    Melissa Stadler, Modern Honey
    A fresh homemade orange cake with a sweet cream cheese frosting.
    4.84 from 62 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Saved!
    Prep Time 20 minutes mins
    Cook Time 20 minutes mins
    15 minutes mins
    Total Time 35 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Servings 14
    Calories 620 kcal

    Equipment

    • kitchenaid mixer
    • 8 inch round cake pan
    • 9 inch round cake pans
    • measuring cups and spoons
    • spatula set

    Ingredients
      

    • 2 ½ cups Flour
    • 1 ¾ cups Sugar
    • 1 ½ teaspoon Baking Soda
    • 1 teaspoon Baking Powder
    • ¾ teaspoon Salt
    • 1 cup Oil (extra-virgin olive oil, canola, or blood orange evoo)
    • 1 cup Fresh Orange Juice
    • 3 Eggs
    • 1 cup Sour Cream
    • 1 - 2 teaspoons Orange Zest

    Orange Cream Cheese Frosting:

    • 1 cup Butter softened
    • 1 - 8- ounce pkg. Cream Cheese softened
    • 4 cups Powdered Sugar
    • 1 teaspoon Orange Zest
    • 2 Tablespoons Fresh Orange Juice

    Instructions
     

    • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
    • In a large mixing bowl, stir flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
    • In another mixing bowl, cream oil, orange juice, eggs, sour cream, and orange zest until completely mixed.
    • Fold in dry ingredients, mixing only until combined.
    • Generously grease your non-stick cake pans with non-stick cooking spray or grease them with butter and flour. Pour batter into greased (3) 8-inch or (2) 9-inch cake pans.
    • Bake for 19-21 minutes, depending on the size of pan used. To test if the cakes are done, insert a toothpick in the center of the cake. If it comes out clean, the cakes are done. Let cool for 15 minutes before removing from pans.
    • To make frosting:
    • In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and cream cheese for 4 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape down sides of the bowl halfway through mixing. Stir in powdered sugar, orange zest, and orange juice.
    • Once cakes are cooled, frost with orange cream cheese frosting.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 620kcalCarbohydrates: 80gProtein: 4gFat: 33gSaturated Fat: 11gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 78mgSodium: 381mgPotassium: 144mgFiber: 1gSugar: 60gVitamin A: 574IUVitamin C: 9mgCalcium: 53mgIron: 1mg
    Keyword orange cake
    Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

     

    Pin on Pinterest:

    Homemade Orange Cake with Sweet Orange Cream Cheese Frosting. How to make the best orange cake. Orange cake with orange frosting. Naked orange cake. www.modernhoney.com #cake #orangecake #nakedcake #nakedorangecake

    That girl, who was turning ten years old, just graduated a few days ago from high school. Of course, I heard from older mothers about how fast time goes but still wasn’t fully prepared. I am so excited for her to experience college life but my heart aches to think of her leaving home. The day after graduation, we took off for Kauai Hawaii to celebrate her graduation. This is just what the family needed – some good relaxing family time while filling our days with some serious adventure! You can follow along on instagram @modern_honey. Happy Baking, my friends!

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    • Light, fluffy homemade lemon cupcakes with fresh lemon frosting are the perfect dessert for lemon lovers. This is the best lemon cupcake recipe!
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Apoorva

      May 22, 2023 at 2:44 pm

      5 stars
      This cake has become a family favorite! It's SOO fresh, deliciously moist, and tender. The baking time is more like 30-35minutes. But it comes out perfectly every time!

      Reply
    2. Chyril

      April 08, 2023 at 10:57 am

      5 stars
      This cake recipe is amazing, we have only ever made it with gluten free 1/1 flour. Everyone knows that gf flour can be dry and sometimes grainy…not in this recipe! It has definitely become our go to recipe for any event and is loved by everyone who tastes it.
      Thank you, this recipe has brought the family together with a cake that everyone can enjoy even those who are not fans of gf baking!

      Reply
      • Melissa Stadler

        April 10, 2023 at 7:50 am

        This comment made my whole day, Chyril! I am so glad that this recipe works so well gluten free and that EVERYBODY loves it. Thank you for trying out my recipe!

        Reply
    3. Prudence

      March 20, 2023 at 1:53 pm

      I love your website. I have been making the orange cake for four .5 years now and it is incredible. Never fails. It’s so moist and the flavor is exceptional. I fold plain cream cheese frosting with Italian buttercream. It makes for a lighter flavor. Should be in your top 20/1. I am making your chocolate cake for a party in May. I look at your recipes and want to make all of them!!!!!

      Reply
    4. Jeanette Dornbusch

      February 19, 2022 at 11:34 am

      5 stars
      OMG I Just Made This Luscious Cake With No Problems I Subbed The Sour Cream With Greek Plain Yogurt And It Worked Fine My Cake Pans Took 30 Mins...My Husband Loves This Cake!! I Might Add More Orange Zest Next Time..Oh And That Frosting Is To Die For Especially With More Orange Zest! Thank You So Much For Sharing This Winner.I Look Forward In Trying Those Pizza Sliders And A Few Of The Chicken Recipes!!

      Reply
    5. Mandi

      February 03, 2022 at 2:27 pm

      Made this cake for a friend’s birthday; followed the recipe with a few small changes: added vanilla paste to both the batter and frosting, used the zest from all oranges juiced (3 for cake and 1 for frosting), and baked it in 2 8” round pans (they were quite thick and ended up taking almost 3x the baking time). The cake was a huge hit and tasted so fresh and decadent and was so incredibly moist. I’ll be making it again today, but using milk in place of orange juice to make a vanilla confetti cake - it was so moist that I couldn’t wait to try the recipe again!

      Reply
    6. Julie

      January 02, 2022 at 7:36 pm

      This cake was really good - even the chocolate lovers loved it. The one thing I’d mention is that there isn’t a great deal of frosting. It will only allow for a naked cake and even then there isn’t a great deal of frosting. Make more if you like frosting!

      Reply
    7. Martha

      September 10, 2021 at 8:33 pm

      5 stars
      I'm going to bake this in a Bundt pan. How long should I bake the cake for? Thanks. Love your recipes!

      Reply
    8. Susan E Hammond

      August 27, 2021 at 2:13 pm

      5 stars
      I made this for a friend's birthday and everyone loved it. Definitely going to make it again!

      Reply
    9. Joanne Gera

      April 19, 2021 at 12:38 am

      5 stars
      Made this cake for my son's birthday and it was so delicious. I was worried it would be too sweet or overpowered by orange flavor, but no, it was perfect. Will definitely be making this again! Thank you for sharing your recipe ☺️????

      Reply
    10. Karen Austgen

      April 05, 2021 at 8:01 am

      5 stars
      Thank you so much for this recipe, I LOVE IT! And it might now be my favorite cake ever (replacing Red Velvet with the traditional cooked frosting). I made cupcakes, and baked them for 18 minutes. The cupcakes were very tender and delicate but definitely baked completely. Oh, and I made my own blood orange evoo by processing the peel from 2 blood oranges with 1-1/4 cup of evoo. I let it sit for 90 minutes before straining out the peel. I will definitely be making this recipe again and again!

      Reply
      • Ida

        March 15, 2023 at 4:54 am

        Ms. Karen, can you please provide me with more details on how exactly you made your own evoo? Thank you, I'd appreciate it.

        Reply
    11. Anne

      February 20, 2021 at 1:19 pm

      4 stars
      the cake is delicious! I didnt have cream cheese so I used mascarpone with powder sugar, heavy whipping cream, a pinch of sale, a dash of vanilla extract and orange zest. AMAZING! I did take a star off because the cake is extremely oily and it wouldnt hold its shape. Even fridge chilled, it wanted to break into pieces. Next time I might reduce the amount of oil and sour cream to create a bit more structure. This cake wouldnt work for cupcakes I dont think.

      Reply
      • Ida

        March 15, 2023 at 4:52 am

        The site provided does not offer the blood orange olive oil. Help!

        Reply
        • Modern Honey

          March 15, 2023 at 8:54 am

          Hi Ida! You can still order their Valencia Orange Olive Oil. Also, you can use any type of olive oil or canola oil in this recipe. It doesn't have to be the infused orange olive oil.

          Reply
        • Karen

          March 15, 2023 at 8:59 am

          5 stars
          Ida, when I made this recipe, I made my own blood orange evoo by processing the peel from 2 blood oranges with 1-1/4 cup of evoo. I let it sit for 90 minutes before straining out the peel. I will definitely be making this recipe again and again!

          Reply
    12. alexis adams

      February 07, 2021 at 11:27 am

      This cake is delicious! Came out perfectly (a little longer bake time for me - approximately 30 minutes). I am so pleased! I did use a teeny bit less than a cup of the blood orange oil. Everyone thinks its delicious. So happy to have found this recipe!

      Reply
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    Melissa Stadler Modern Honey

    Hi, I'm Melissa Stadler! I am an Award-Winning Recipe Creator. Cover of Food Network Magazine. Two-Time Pillsbury Bake-Off Finalist. I am passionate about sharing the best recipes so you have success in the kitchen!

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