Rachael Ray

My cousin Shalina always inspires me to try out new things. In London this Christmas, she made the family a tangerine cake. I am a fan of desserts and chocolates that incorporate fresh fruits for flavor – it adds brightness and compliments the sweetness. However, the biggest selling factors for me was that the cake is FAT FREE, GLUTEN FREE AND FAIL FREE (very important for less competent bakers like myself).

The cake could not have been easier. Just one pot needed for simmering the clementine and a mixing bowl needed to combine the ingredients. No creaming until butter and sugar are pale (because there is no butter), no whisking eggs to soft peaks, no folding the flour. How could a cake be so forgiving?

What I love about this gluten and fat free cake is that you don’t miss either. In fact the almond flour lends itself to a more gourmet taste and texture, something that one would find at a French patisserie. The absence of fat in this recipe also busts the myth: that fat is required in cakes to hold the cake together, keep it moist and give it that golden color. This cake can certainly hold its own and is stunningly golden.

This tangerine cake is soft and moist and gets better with age – I am not kidding. Unlike most cakes that are at their prime when they come out of the oven and then start dehydrating a few hours later, this cake remains soft (as if it has been drenched in some kind of orange liqueur) and aromatic for almost a week. Simply

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eat as is or serve with crème fraiche and some grated pistachios.

Recipe For Fat And Gluten Free Tangerine Cake With Pistachio Slivers

Ingredients

13oz clementine

6 eggs

8oz demerera sugar

9oz almond flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. vanilla essence

2 tbsp. slivered pistachios

Honey to drizzle

Springform pan/ Cake tin

Method

1) Set oven to 350 degrees F

2) Set the tangerines to boil for 2 hours with skin on. Strain and slice in half and remove seeds. Blend into a pulp. Set aside to cool

3) In a separate bowl, with a fork, beat six eggs until yellow and whites are well combined and the sugar. Add the ground almond flour and baking powder followed by the cooled tangerine pulp. Mix well

4) Pour in to a greased springform pan and bake for 40 minutes. Cover the cake with foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes to avoid burning

5) Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with pistachios when the cake cools down

Saira Malhotra, is of British–Indian descent and is a chef, food writer and cooking instructor based in New York City. Raised in Hounslow, U.K, or rather ‘Little India’, where the air is aromatic with roasted spices, little did Saira know these moments would follow her from being a student in France and Italy to residing in NYC with her husband and kids and parlay themselves unexpectedly in to a culinary career. She is a graduate of the International Culinary Center in New York City. Come visit her at her food blog: www.passportpantry.com where she shares approachable and international recipes.