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Thursday, January 23, 2014

Williamsburg Orange Cake



This cake is incredibly moist. The directions took me by surprise, but it is a very old recipe. Use you own judgement or follow my revised directions at the bottom. My family went to visit my (Great) Uncle Perry in Virginia every summer, and we went to Williamsburg, Virginia as often as we could while there! For me anything that has Williamsburg in the title has to be awesome! :-)

2 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup shortening
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup drained, crushed Dole® pineapple
1/2 cup pecans or almonds, finely chopped (I used almonds)
1 tbsp orange zest
Williamsburg Butter Frosting*

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Measure all ingredients into a large mixer bowl.*** Blend for 1/2 a minute on low speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Beat 2-3 minutes on high, scraping down the sides of the bowl. Pour into 2 - 9 inch greased and floured cake pans. (I made this one in a 9x13 pan.) Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack and frost cake.

Williamsburg Butter Frosting*

1/3 cup butter
3 cups confectioner's sugar (10X sugar)
3-4 tbsp orange juice
2 tsp orange zest

Blend butter and sugar. Stir in juice and orange zest. Beat until smooth.


*** The directions threw me, but the recipe is very old. I followed my own directions that I was taught in making cakes... I creamed the sugar, butter and shortening. I added the eggs, zest and vanilla. I combined the dry ingredients, and added alternating with the buttermilk. Lastly, I added the nuts and fruit.



Shared on Meal Plan Monday 

26 comments:

  1. This looks amazing! Going to try it this weekend!

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  2. I've never heard of this cake before, I am anxious to try it -thank you!

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  4. Tried this cake out and it's s the best I've had in a while. Used the creaming method and the result was a fluffy, moist delight. Thanks a bunch

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  5. I am a Virginia girl, born & bred & very much southerner! I love Williamsburg & any type southern cooking too! This is an awesome cake! Thanks for sharing!

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  6. Going to make this only without the raisins. I can eat them out of the box but not baked in anything. Can't wait to try it.

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    1. I do not see raisins. What am I missing??

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    2. I have no idea! I don't have raisins in it. I have pineapple.

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  7. I always use the standard 1,2,3,4 cake recipe substituting orange juice for milk and adding orange zest when making an orange cake, but this I gotta try! Yum! Thanks for sharing!

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  8. I see a picture of a 9 x 13 glass baking dish, not two 9" cake pans. Would you change the cooking time using the 9x13 dish?

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    1. I made it in a 9X13 this time. It works fine. You may need to cook it a few minutes longer for the center to cook. Check it with a toothpick and adjust the time.

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  9. Oh I am going to try this 4 a dinnner. My Mother is diabetic, and we don;t do sweets but this is somethng I will try~~~

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  10. Can this cake be baked in a 9 x 13 pan? If so, what are the specific baking instructions? How long and at what temperature?

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    1. I made it in a 9X13 pan, and it works fine. No need to adjust anything. Just check the cake with a toothpick and cook longer if needed.

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  11. I have never used Kosher salt, can we use just regular table salt? If so do we have to change the amount?

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    1. Table salt has a bitter taste. Kosher salt does not, and it's milder. I would use a tiny bit less or instead of all-purpose, use self rising flour and omit the salt and baking soda.

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  12. Orange zest in the cake and frosting are a winner for me!

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  13. What an interesting mix, but sounds tasty

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  14. Buttermilk in anything makes it better! And, then the orange zest...omg, girrrrrrrrrrrrrr!! xo

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  15. This cake sounds incredible, and I bet that frosting just makes it over the top delicious!

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  16. Turned out wonderful! Very very moist. I did make more icing, glad I did as it is delicious.

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  17. The cake sounds delicious!!😋

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  18. I just made this cake for Easter and it was so good! The only thing I tweaked was the frosting. I added cream cheese and extra powdered sugar to make more and it was really good! I think I read that this is an old Betty Crocker recipe from 1969. I saw a similar recipe but with raisins- I think that would be even better. I used the pecans and also sprinkled it on top. Everyone brought some home afterwards. I will make this again. Thanks for the recipe!

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  19. My grandmother was a great, old-school Southern cook. She made all her cakes using the one-bowl or "all-in-at once" method, as described in the recipe. Never a bad or failed one that I can ever recall.

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