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Orange Filling
1/2 cup sugar 2 1/2 tablespoons flour Grated rind 1/2 orange 1/4 cup orange juice 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice 1 egg slightly beaten 1 teaspoon butter Mix ingredients in order given. Cook ten minutes in double boiler, stirring constantly. Cool before spreading.
A simple stirred orange curd thickened with flour rather than yolks alone, meant to be spread between cake layers. The whole recipe hinges on cooking it long enough for the flour to lose its rawness without scrambling the egg.
- YieldAbout three-quarters of a cup, enough to fill one two-layer 8- or 9-inch cake. Double it if you want a generous filling for three layers.
- Mix dry first"In order given" matters: whisk the sugar and flour together before any liquid goes in, or the flour will lump and no amount of stirring in the double boiler will smooth it out.
- Double boilerUse simmering, not boiling, water and keep the bowl clear of it. Direct heat will set the egg into curds before the flour thickens.
- Ten minutes is not too longThe mixture will thicken well before ten minutes are up, but flour needs the full time to cook out its pasty taste. Keep stirring and scrape the sides.
- Butter at the end works betterButter at the end -- Some cooks prefer to stir the teaspoon of butter in after the filling comes off the heat for a glossier finish; adding it at the start, as the recipe does, does no harm.
- Orange juiceA quarter cup is roughly the juice of one medium orange, and since the recipe wants only the grated rind of half an orange, a single orange supplies both. Fresh juice is noticeably brighter than carton juice here.
- Cooling and spreadingCover the surface with plastic wrap or waxed paper so no skin forms, and cool to room temperature. Warm filling will soak into the crumb and slide the layers apart.
- KeepingBecause it contains egg and no preservative, refrigerate any surplus and use within two days.