Ingredients
(loaf)
1 orange
1 ½ cups granulated sugar
¾ cup softened butter
½ cup greek yogurt or cream cheese
3 eggs
1 ½ cups AP flour
(syrup)
4 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp water for syrup
Preheat oven to 350 F.
Zest 1 orange into a large bowl.
Mix in butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar.
Combine in eggs and yogurt.
Stir in flour.
Pour batter into a loaf tin and bake for 60 minutes, then check the top of your loaf to see if it needs tinfoil before baking for another 30 minutes.
Let's make the syrup: juice the absolute heck out of your orange. Add juice to a pan with 1/4 cup sugar and 2 tbsp water.
Let this mixture simmer on medium heat until sugar is dissolved and liquid is a clear orange color. Let the syrup thicken over low heat for 10 minutes, then pour into a small container.
Pour the syrup over the warm loaf, let the loaf soak the syrup up for a few minutes before cutting.
Tips
Don't have yogurt?
Use an equal amount of sour cream or cream cheese! This is what gives the loaf a pound cake texture. If you don't have any of those substitutes, you can try using butter instead, but I'm not sure if your loaf will come out quite as well. Let me know if you use any substitutes!
Syrup
The syrup is very easy! It's only sugar, orange juice, and water. For those with a little less confidence, here are some more detailed steps.
- First, combine the sugar, juice, and water in a saucepan.
- Turn the heat to medium and allow the sugar to dissolve. Don't stir the mix until it is a clear orange color and bubbling.
- I probably let my syrup continue to simmer for 5 minutes on medium. Then, I took a little spoonful of the syrup, let it cool, and tried it. It should be sweet, orangey, and a little syrupy. I should be able to tell that its thicker than water.
- Turn the heat to low and let the syrup thicken for 10 minutes. Stay near your stove to make sure that the syrup doesn't burn. I stirred mine every minute or so. You don't want you syrup to be honey thick, more like maple syrup thickness.
- Turn the heat off and transfer the syrup to a small container to pour over the loaf when it's out of the oven.
Candied orange peel
I highly recommend making this! You've zested and juiced your orange. Now it's time to make a yummy decoration. Cut the flesh and pith (white stuff) off the peel. Cut the peel into thin, long pieces. In a small pan over medium heat, dissolve 1/4 cup sugar into 1/2 cup water. Add the peel and turn the heat to medium low, let peels candy for 20 minutes. If the mixture ever gets dark or starts to smell burnt, remove it from the heat. Toss peel in sugar.
Bake time
My loaf needed a total of 1 hour and 30 minutes. After 1 hour, I covered my loaf with tinfoil so that the top didn't burn. Use a toothpick to test the inside, don't decide if it's baked just by sight.
Calories
Baked goods are often high in sugar, fat, and carbs. As someone who bakes often, I have to watch how much I eat. I love to eat. I do. I also love to have a healthy body. That being said, I appreciate when a recipe states a calorie count. So I've decided to provide that for you.
Total calories: 3,506
My calculations include the loaf and syrup. Divide that number by how many slices you cut. I cut 12, so each slice is 292 calories. I calculate my calories ingredient by ingredient. If you used different ingredients, your calories will be different. As always, eat in moderation.
Pics!
The butter, sugar, and zest creamed together.
Greek yogurt and eggs added.
After mixing in the flour.
Pour your batter into a loaf tin and bake for 1 hour, then check the loaf to see if you should cover the top with tinfoil and bake for longer.
The syrup! This step was easier than I expected it to be. Just let the sugar dissolve into the juice+water and then let it simmer until it reaches a clear orange color. Taste it, it should be orangey and thicker than water. Then turn the heat down and allow it to thicken more. If the syrup ever gets dark or smells burnt, take it off the heat; we're not making caramel.
This bread is so simple and delicious. It's hard to believe that such few ingredients and ONLY 1 ORANGE produced this stellar loaf. Well-planned recipes yield results like these. The orange went such a long way because we used its zest, juice, and peel. And of course, you can eat the fruit when you're done. Make this recipe, my lovelies, it's a scrumptious treat.
Love,
Rachel