Reviewed: Sep. 23, 2011

Not very often I given a 5 rating, but this cake is superb and wouldn't change a thing. Of course we love orange so the amount of zest listed is perfect. Thanks for a lovely addition to my files.

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Reviewer:

EILISH40

Cooking Level: Intermediate

Home Town: Newry, County Down, Northern Ireland, U.K.

Living In: Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada

Reviewed: Jan. 27, 2011

Everyone loved it! I cooked it in a tray of 6 small bundt cakes - I only had to cook them for 40-45mins. I made a few substitutions - like plain no fat, gelatin free yogurt instead of sour cream just for a healthier option.

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Reviewer:

maverick84

Reviewed: Jul. 30, 2010

A wonderful cake! Following the suggestion of an earlier reviewer, I increased the number of eggs to 3 and substituted craisins for raisins. I also used a little less sugar than specified and the cake was more than sufficiently sweet. An across the board hit.

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Reviewer:

tmce

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Reviewed: Nov. 16, 2009

The four star rating is only because this is boldly orange flavored, a bit too much for my liking. For those that might appeal to, then this is definitely a five star cake. Given the ratio of sugar, butter and flour, I doubled the number of eggs which resulted in an incredibly moist cake. Obviously the orange syrup, which soaked into the cake, played a big part in that as well! I thought dried cherries would be a nice complement so I used those instead of the raisins. While the walnuts and raisins (or in my case cherries) are certainly a good fit for this cake, this is one occasion, probably because this cake is SO full of flavor, that I'd prefer this cake without either. Were I to make this again I would also cut the amount of orange zest in half for a more subtle orange flavor. I made this in mini Bundtlette cake pans for individual cakes.

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Reviewer:

naples34102

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

Living In: Mequon, Wisconsin, USA

Reviewed: Mar. 23, 2009

I'm not sure if I can rate this recipe fairly because I made a LOT of changes before I ever started. I'm a professional cake baker and I saw some problems with this recipe from the beginning; I could tell it might come out a bit dry and with not enough orange flavor. I replaced the sour cream with buttermilk (about 3/4 the amount called for) and a few tablespoons of vegetable oil. I also added half an extra egg and half a cup of orange juice. I used half white sugar and half brown sugar as well. As for the glaze, it definitely needed a lot more sugar in order to reach that "crunch" consistency it was intended to. I also added about a half a teaspoon of vanilla in order to cut the direct acidity. I didn't use any raisins or walnuts because I simply don't like them. All in all, with the changes - I acutally came out with a REALLY nice moist, flavorful cake with prominent orange flavor. This cake would be great if you used a little pineapple juice with the orange, and maybe sprinkled some shredded toasted coconut onto the glaze while it's still wet.

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Reviewer:

ChrisM88

Reviewed: Mar. 15, 2007

Pretty good...Make sure you wait until the cake is mostly cooled before adding the glaze. I added in dried cranberries, too.

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Reviewer:

MSAGGIEAMY

Cooking Level: Expert

Home Town: Crandall, Texas, USA

Living In: Rockwall, Texas, USA

Reviewed: Dec. 14, 2006

The name is misleading... there is NOT a crunch to the cake, but the topping does make for a nice texture to the outside. I made this for an office gift exchange which of course means it is shared among the group. I got lots of "wonderful" comments. We decided it is the prefect dessert to have with tea and coffee. FYI... not a moist cake which why it makes a good partner for tea and coffee.

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Reviewer:

Nicole

Living In: Kirkland, Washington, USA

Reviewed: Jun. 16, 2006

This cake is delicious. I omitted the icing, and orange rind. Very nice texture, not too sweet, just perfect!

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Reviewer:

jenj

Reviewed: Mar. 15, 2006

A great "hearty" orange cake. Family has asked for the recipe. I added half cup of orange juice to the recipe, and doubled the topping recipe for extra crunch.

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Reviewer:

KristaP

Reviewed: Dec. 6, 2005

awesome! took the advice of one other cook with adding a topping, tasted great! i do not know what the others are talking abt... in regards to the crunch but my glaze added the crunch along with the nuts. used cranberries instead of the raisins. thank you . a true keeper

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