Milk Roux Mandarin Orange Butter Cake

A butter cake that carries the unique nice flavour of the Lunar New Year - mandarin orange peel aroma. Besides the golden crumb of the velvety butter cake, the cake also embedded with small chunks of cranberries and specks of mandarin orange peels. Well, for the milk roux, it was just my experiment of adding more liquid to the cake 😉


Yield: one loaf of cake
Pan size: 21.5x11.5x5.5 cm
Baking temperature: 160°C at second upper rack for 30 minutes, lower to middle rack and bake at 170℃ for 10 minutes.

Milk Roux

25g milk
5g top flour

1. Mix the two ingredients and let them thaw to almost room temperature for about 10 to 15 minutes.

2. Stir the mixture over low heat till it thickens into a glossy paste.

3. After the milk roux has cooled to almost room temperature, transfer to a small dish. Cover with a tall glass to prevent the top from drying and forming a skin. Set aside.

Butter Cake Batter

All ingredients in room temperature
Using 56~59g Omega 3&6 eggs

110g unsalted butter, softened
About 1/8 tsp fine salt
100g caster sugar

3 eggs, beaten

15g golden syrup/honey
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

~25g milk roux from above

110g top/cake flour
10g milk powder
2g baking powder

30g dried cranberries
4g mandarin orange peel

Directions

1. Grease the cake pan with butter. Set aside.

 

2. Mix top flour, milk powder, and baking powder in a bowl. Set aside.

3. Combine golden syrup and vanilla extract in a small glass. Set aside.
Soak dried cranberries in hot water for about 1 minute. Drain and pat dry on a sheet of paper kitchen towel. Set aside.
Cut mandarin orange peel into thin strips. Set aside.

4. Cream softened butter, pinch of salt, and caster sugar till light and fluffy.

Gradually add the beaten egg into the batter. Blend well before adding the next portion.

5. Blend in the milk roux.

6. Blend in the golden syrup mixture from Step 3.

7. Fold in the sieved flour mixture from Step 2.

Give a thorough mixing using a spatula.

8. Pour about 1/3 of the batter into the prepared cake pan.
Mix the cranberries and mandarin orange peel to the remaining batter before pouring into the cake pan.

9. Bake at the second  upper rack of a preheated oven, at 160℃ for about 30 minutes. Shift down to middle rack, and bake at 170℃ for about 10 minutes.

10. Transfer the cake to a cooling rack to cool down for about 5~10 minutes, or till the sides of the cake shrink away from the wall of the baking pan.

Invert out the cake and let it rest on a cooling rack.

Cover the cake with cling wrap and let it cools to room temperature. This step is optional.

Cut and enjoy 😋