Orange Chocolate Cake

To celebrate a double birthday (early birthdays for my brother and my dad), I made two desserts. Well technically, I was supposed to just make this cake, and my cousin B was supposed to make the apple tart. In the end, she had other stuff to do as well, so she helped me make the applesauce. Then I made the rest of the tart using store-bought puff pastry for the crust. This was also because my dad mentioned preferring it with puff pastry.

While debating what cake to make, I recalled the Black Forest cake I had made. I didn't have applesauce, but I used some my cousin made for the apple tart. I also used a sweetened cocoa powder (like those to mix in milk) as I did not have unsweetened cocoa, so reduced the sugar a lot. Also, instead of using 1/2 cup of decaf, I used about 1/4 cup decaf, and 1/4 cup fresh squeezed orange juice. To add to the orange flavor, I zested an organic orange and threw it in with the dry ingredients.

For decoration, I sliced a smaller organic orange and simmered it in a simple sugar syrup (1 part sugar, 1 part water) until translucent, then drained on a grill. On a whim, I took some chocolate, melted it with a bit of vegetable oil to make it shinier. Then I swiped some leaf/drop shapes on a sheet of baking paper using the back of a spoon, and put it in the freezer to set.

I whipped cream with some icing sugar in it and put it between the two cake halves. Then I spread the rest over the top of the cake, and cut halves of candied orange slices before arranging them on top. With the chocolate, I settled for a flower-like shape, trying my best to keep the chocolate from melting in my hands. I chopped up a bit of a leftover candied orange for the flower's center.

Here's the cake with the candles, as well as a bit of the apple tart. I had planned to try making my own puff pastry, but didn't want to make the effort while having so much to do that day. Unfortunately, I had forgotten my camera at college, so had to settle with my phone's camera. We had a nice dinner with family, ate the cake, apple tart, and a fruit salad accompanied by some tea, then played games. All in all, it was a great party!