I’m a big fan of citrus. If a dish tastes flat in almost any way, my first thought is to add lemon juice, orange zest or a hint of lime. Most of the time this small adjustment delivers big results. While there’s nothing lacking in yesterday’s No-Egg Spice Cake, I wanted to give the fall spicing a bit of a spring lift. The solution: Easy Orange Buttercream Icing.
Come autumn, I”ll top cake with a rich browned-butter icing or a warm cinnamon frosting. But for now, I’m going for light and bright orange. If spice cake doesn’t interest you, this orange icing will pair equally well with the Egg-Free Depression-Era Chocolate Cake. Mix and match any of the cakes and toppings as you see fit. Cake not your thing? Use the icing as a filling and make sandwich cookies with shortbread or ginger cookies. The beauty of home baking lies in the endless possibilities, so don’t limit yourself to the suggested pairings.
other uses for orange juice concentrate
If I’ve convinced you to open a container of frozen concentrated orange juice for this icing, what are you going to do with the leftovers? I mean, other than make more icing. Here are some suggestions to pique your culinary imagination:
Mix a spoonful into marinade for chicken
Stir some into a beef stew
Swirl it into plain yogurt
Replace some liquid in a cake with it to add orange flavour
Whisk some into salad dressing
Spoon some into a smoothie
Blend it into a milkshake
Whip some into heavy cream
Layer some into an ice pop
If one of the above options appeals or you have other suggestions, leave a comment. I’ve got an opened container of frozen orange juice concentrate in the freezer and can’t decide which direction to take.
Orange zest and frozen orange juice concentrate give this buttercream its flavour. A bit of vanilla softens the edges.
Scale
Ingredients
1/2 cup (115 g) room temperature butter
Finely grated zest of 1 large orange* 2 cups (250 g) icing sugar (also called confectioners’ sugar or powdered sugar) 2 tablespoons (30 ml) frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed 1 teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla
generous pinch salt
Instructions
In a medium bowl, using a hand held mixer, beat the butter and zest until the butter is smooth.
Add the icing sugar, orange juice concentrate, vanilla, and salt. Beat on low until the icing sugar is fully incorporated. You might want to cover the bowl with a tea towel to prevent the icing sugar from flying about.
Once the icing sugar is blended into the butter, increase the speed to high and beat until the icing is very light and fluffy. Stop and scrape down the side of the bowl a few times. When it looks good, keep beating. Beat for at LEAST 5 minutes, and ideally for up to 10 minutes. The long beating produces a very smooth and creamy icing.
Notes
* If you don’t have a large orange on hand, you can use the zest from a few clementines or mandarines.
Leftover icing can be frozen. Or eaten with a spoon.
You can intensify the flavour by adding 1 teaspoon orange extract.
