Recipe of the Month: It's Orange Season!

I was born in southern California and our home was right next to orange groves, I still remember the sweet fragrance of the orange blossoms, the glimmer of the dark green leaves under the bright sun and the stark contrast of the beautiful orange fruit.  At the time we never could have imagined that today the orange groves would be riddled with housing developments. 
So, today we feel grateful that we are blessed with organic orange groves right here in Arizona. Just right for you, our Untamed friends.

Oranges, with their sweet juicy pulp, are an excellent source of vitamin C. They are also a very good source of dietary fiber. In addition, oranges are a good source of B vitamins including vitamin B1, pantothenic acid, and folate as well as vitamin A, calcium, copper, and potassium.  So not only are they good for you...but they are delicious! Now what goes better with oranges than chocolate...a match made in Untamed heaven!  Which leads us to another recipe we would love to share with you, featuring some of our Untamed Confections....

Special Occasion Chocolate Orange Cake

This delicious cake is a real treat. Free from sugar but high in taste, you will find it simple to prepare, and the honey, chocolate, orange and walnut flavors are wonderful together. Oranges are in season right now here in the Sonoran Desert, Arizona, and this is the inspiration behind this delicious chocolate orange cake recipe.

The frosting is not your usual high-fat, high-sugar mixture. Instead we are using our Peruvian Fair Trade Organic 72% Dark Chocolate sweetened with Sonoran Desert Honey, along with some orange honey caramels to add to the sweetness and richness. If you prefer, you can swap the honey caramels for extra dark chocolate though, depending how rich you like your frosting.

A word of advice - this frosting tends to set very fast, so work quickly to spread it over the cake. If you want to frost the sides of the cake as well as the top, double the amount of frosting you are using. This cake keeps for several days in an airtight container.

Ingredients:

1/3 cup organic cocoa powder
1 oz coarsely chopped Organic Orange 72% Dark Chocolate
2 1/2 teaspoons aluminum baking powder
1/2 teaspoon organic ground cinnamon
1/2 cup organic all-purpose flour or coconut flour
1/4 cup chopped organic walnuts, plus more for garnish
1/8 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup Sonoran Desert Wildflower Honey (or similar)
6 free-range eggs
1/2 cup whole milk or coconut milk
1/2 teaspoon organic vanilla extract
1/2 cup organic olive oil
Thinly-cut fresh organic orange slices, for garnish

For the Frosting

3 teaspoons Sonoran Desert Wildflower Honey (or similar)
3 oz coarsely chopped Organic Orange 72% Dark Chocolate
1 oz Orange Honey Caramels
4 oz chopped organic unsalted butter
1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions:

First preheat the oven to 320 degrees F. Stir the cocoa, dark chocolate, baking powder, cinnamon, flour, walnuts, and salt together in a bowl. Now whisk in the honey, eggs, milk, vanilla and olive oil, until smooth.

Pour this batter into a 9-inch baking paper-lined pan, and bake for 45 minutes or until the cake is cooked through. Depending on your oven, this might take up to an hour, but check it after 45 minutes just in case. Let the cake cool in the pan, then transfer it to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Meanwhile, place a heatproof mixing bowl over a pan of gently simmering water. Don't let the water touch the bottom of the bowl. Add the honey, chocolate, caramels, butter and salt and melt, stirring often. Transfer the bowl into an ice bath and whisk with an electric mixture until the frosting is spreadable.

Spread the frosting quickly over the top of the cake. Be quick because it will start to set fast! Now you can garnish the finished cake with walnut halves and orange slices, and enjoy a slice with a cup of tea or coffee.

Enjoy!