Party Recipe: Chocolate Chip Orange Celebration Cake

Party Recipe: Chocolate Chip Orange Celebration Cake
I recently went to Portland's largest garage sale. It sounds ridiculous, but it's a real thing, and I enjoyed a Saturday morning filled with digging through tables and piles of other people's junk treasures.
We didn't end up buying much, but I did snag an old, heavy aluminium bundt cake pan - just like my mom's - for only 25 cents. Bargain. It's lovingly used, and on first use, it worked just fine.

Ever since, I've been looking through mom's old recipes that I still have, looking for any ol' excuse to make a bundt cake. They may seem a little old fashioned, but with the right accoutrements and a splash of creativity, there's always a place for a nice bundt cake at my dinner table.
I'd love for you to try this chocolate chip orange bundt cake recipe at your next weekend gathering, dinner party, or just call Sunday morning a special occasion to sip some tea and a slice of this baked beauty. It's not hard to make if you are careful to prep your ingredients (and your pan, particularly) according to the instructions.

I've modified the original recipe to cut the butter down (the old original has a pound of butter!) and to reduce the sugar to compensate for the chocolate, as well as a few of my own tricks to keep it light and lovely. The result is downright delicious, if I do say so myself. Bon appetit!

Chocolate Chip Orange Celebration Cake


Light and moist with a wonderful crisp crust, your guests will be begging to get this recipe. It's so good it doesn't need a glaze!
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 cup butter, room temperature (1 stick)
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 3 eggs
  • 2 tablespoon fresh orange zest
  • 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 2 cups chocolate chips
  • 2 teaspoon fresh orange zest (for garnish)
(For the orange zest and juice, you'll need approximately 2 large oranges.)

Preheat your oven to 350F. Grease and flour a medium-to-large size bundt pan. This recipe is prone to sticking with the chocolate, so ensure your pan is evenly coated.
In a medium bowl, whisk together your dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until light and smooth. Mix in the olive oil and eggs (add eggs in one at a time), then add orange zest and vanilla. Slowly add in orange juice and dry ingredient mixture, ensuring batter is smooth as you pour in more ingredients. Ensure everything is fully incorporated but do not overmix. When finished, use a wooden spoon to mix in your chocolate chips by hand.
Pour your batter into your prepared bundt pan and bake for approximately 45 minutes; the top will turn a golden brown, and when a knife or toothpick comes clean when inserted into the middle of the cake, it is ready to come out of the own.
Allow the cake to cool for at least 15 minutes before removing from the bundt pan (otherwise you might risk your cake tearing in half). Do not leave it in the pan until fully cool as you'll have a harder time removing it.
When cool, serve with a sprinkling of orange zest. Pairs nicely with red wine, English Breakfast tea, vanilla bean ice cream, or a dollop of homemade whipped cream.

Andy Hayes

Andy Hayes is the founder and creator of Plum Deluxe. He authors our award-winning weekly email newsletter, The Blend and curates our popular organic tea of the month club.
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