Orange and white chocolate petit fours: the recipe to my inevitable deterioration

Ingredients

For the Cake:

• (300g) 1 1/3 cups of softened butter
• (150g) 1/2 cup of sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
• (300g) 2 cups of flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• a pinch of salt
• zest and juice of one Valencia Orange

For Decorating:

• (250 g) 9 oz. of white chocolate
• dried and powdered orange peel, or also candied orange peel.

You may like

Orange swiss roll from portugal - torta de laranja

Preparation

• Split the egg yolks from the whites. Beat the egg whites until stiff and then set aside for later.
• Mix together the softened butter and sugar until they have a creamy white color. Now add the egg yolks and vanilla to this mixture and blend together.
• Fold the orange zest into the dough. Combine all dry ingredients in a seperate bowl and then alternately mix in the dry ingredients and orange juice.
• Now fold the stiff egg whites into the dough making sure not to beat them in, otherwise the egg whites will brake down.
• Pour the batter into a buttered and floured cake pan and bake at 320 Fahrenheit (or 160 Celsius) until the top is a nice golden brown or a tester comes out clean.
• After letting the cake cool for a few minutes it should have pulled away from the side of the pan; if not run a knife around the edge and then turn it out onto a cooling rack.
• In the meantime melt the white chocolate on low heat in a double boiler. As soon as the cake has cooled, drizzle it with the white chocolate and decorate as you like.