Sour cream and mandarin syrup cake

This easy mandarin cake is super moist thanks to sour cream and the syrup – it’s the perfect treat for afternoon tea or dessert

INGREDIENTS

• 250g butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups caster sugar
• 2 teaspoons finely grated mandarin rind
• 4 eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sour cream, plus extra to serve
• 1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
• 3/4 cup almond meal
• 2 tablespoons mandarin juice

MANDARIN SYRUP

• 1/2 cup mandarin juice
• 1 1/4 cups caster sugar
• 3 mandarins, peeled, thickly sliced

METHOD

• Step 1
  Preheat oven to 180C/160C fan-forced. Grease a 6.5cm-deep, 20cm (base) round cake pan. Line base and side with baking paper.
• Step 2
  Using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar and mandarin rind until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in sour cream. Sift flour over mixture. Stir to just combine. Stir in almond meal and mandarin juice.
• Step 3
  Spread mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean (cover with foil if over-browning).
• Step 4
  Meanwhile, make Mandarin syrup: Place mandarin juice, sugar and 1 cup water in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or until sugar dissolves. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes or until slightly thickened. Add mandarin slices. Turn to coat. Remove from heat.
• Step 5
  Remove cake from oven. Using a skewer, pierce top of warm cake several times. Drizzle half the hot syrup over cake in pan. Stand for 15 minutes for syrup to be absorbed into cake.
• Step 6
  Transfer cake to a serving plate with sides. Top with mandarin slices and drizzle with remaining syrup. Serve warm with extra sour cream.

NUTRITION

• 2372 kj

  ENERGY

• 32.9g

  FAT TOTAL

• 19.2g

  SATURATED FAT

• 1.5g

  FIBRE

• 6.1g

  PROTEIN

• 134mg

  CHOLESTEROL

• 310mg

  SODIUM

• 64g

  CARBS (TOTAL)