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Moist, delicious and full of citrus flavour, Blood Orange Pound Cake is an easy to make treat the whole family will love.
I love any kind of pound cake. There’s just something so lovely about a simple cake made with good quality ingredients. I make this recipe regularly during the blood orange season. The season varies from year to year but is generally sometime between November and May.
Blood orange juice is the most wonderful colour of dark pink. Funnily enough, the juice doesn’t actually colour the cake pink, but if you use it for the glaze, it definitely does! Sometimes, the rosy hue of the syrup and flecks of orange rind are sometimes just visible when the cake is sliced – but it depends on the strength of the colour to begin with.
Of course, this cake is absolutely delicious made with ordinary oranges as well. Although I hesitate to call any orange ordinary. I mean, seriously, did you ever really look at the individual segments up close? Oranges are little miracles of engineering.
The cake takes very little time to put together, and could even be made using bowls and wooden spoons if you have strong arms. I definitely prefer to use my KitchenAid Mixer! (affiliate link)
Too Good Not To Share
This recipe makes 2 beautiful loaf cakes. I love having Blood Orange Pound Cake on hand for treats and snacking, but you can also make someone else’s day by sharing the second cake. It’s a great way to be neighbourly. This cake also makes a lovely hostess gift.
Freezes Well
If everyone you know is on a diet or you want to have treats on hand, you can freeze the second loaf if you prefer. I suggest slicing the Blood Orange Pound Cake before freezing to make it easy to thaw at short notice.
Glazing Blood Orange Pound Cake
Blood Orange Pound Cake tastes delicious simply sliced and served plain. However, once the cakes have cooled completely, you can glaze them if you like. I use a combination of blood orange glaze and vanilla glaze but you could use one or the other if you prefer.
For an extra special dessert, serve a slice of the cake with some Easy No Churn Blood Orange Ice Cream.
Blood Orange Pound Cake – Printable Recipe
Blood Orange Pound Cake
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour All purpose flour is also known as plain flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup freshly squeezed blood orange juice, divided Ordinary orange juice works here as well, it will simply make Orange Pound Cake.
- ¾ cup buttermilk or plain pouring yogurt, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup butter, softened plus extra for greasing
- 2 cups sugar, divided
- 4 large eggs, beaten
- 2 tablespoons orange zest
- For the optional glaze:
- 1 cup icing sugar Icing sugar is also known as confectioner's sugar.
- 1 – 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed blood orange juice It's find to use plain orange juice, but the glaze will not be pink.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C or 155°C for a fan oven).
- Grease two 8½ x 4½ x 2½ loaf pans with a little butter.
- Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a large bowl. Set aside.
- Gently mix together ¼ cup of the orange juice, the buttermilk or pouring yogurt and vanilla in a pitcher or another bowl. Set aside.
- Beat the butter and 1¾ cups of the sugar in an electric mixer until light and fluffy.
- Beat in the beaten eggs and the orange zest.
- Add the flour mixture and orange juice mixture alternately to the butter, sugar and egg mixture in the electric mixer. I do this in about 2 additions each, beginning and ending with the flour.
- Carefully pour the batter into your two prepared pans, dividing the mixture evenly and gently smoothing the tops.
- Bake for 45 – 60 minutes until the tops of the cakes are beginning to turn golden brown, the cakes spring back when touched lightly, and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove the cakes from the oven and cool in the pans for ten minutes.
- Meanwhile, gently mix the remaining ¼ cup of sugar with the remaining ½ cup of orange juice in a small saucepan.
- Heat the mixture gently, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the sugar is completely dissolved.
- Place a layer of wax or greaseproof paper on the table or counter top, with a layer of paper towels over it.
- Remove the cakes from their baking pans to a wire cooling rack. Place the rack on top of the paper and paper towels.
- Poke a few holes in the cakes with a skewer, and carefully spoon the syrup over top.
- Let the cakes cool completely before glazing.
- To make the glaze, put the icing sugar in a bowl and gradually add one to two teaspoons orange juice until a fairly thick, smooth and pourable consistency is reached.
- Drizzle the glaze over the cakes.
Notes
Equipment
- measuring cups or scales
did you make this recipe?
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April, this really does sound like the perfect weekend cake. I love blood oranges–I can only imagine the sweet aroma. Thanks so much for coming to the party!
Thank you for hosting, and Happy Anniversary 🙂
I just stopped by to comment on the cake, but got caught up in your other recipes. I learned something about your crispy potatoes. Previously I had not parboiled them. I am going to try that technique to see if that will make them crisper. Thanks for that tip. Oh, and your cake looks good.
I’m so glad you enjoyed your visit, and I hope you enjoy the potatoes when you make them. Glad you liked the cake too 🙂 Have a lovely weekend!
Happy Friday April! Your pound cake sounds wonderful and I love making enough to share with friends. In my last neighborhood I always shared the result of whatever recipe I was making with several of my neighbors. It was a good way to share some of the calories as well as the abundance of food that I made for a household with just 2 people! I haven’t gotten back into baking again yet, but I’m looking forward to creating again soon.
Hugs, Andrea
I hope you had a wonderful weekend, Andrea! Thank you for visiting 🙂
I saved this recipe, as the orange makes a nice addition. Poking holes in the warm cake and gently spooning syrup over both cakes sounds wonderful. I bake mine in a tube pan, and that would work too. I like the idea of two loaf cakes, one can be saved for later.
Thank you, Hazel. I’m so glad you liked it 🙂
thanks for the comment. very interesting recipe, looks great!
Any dessert that is orange flavored is at the top of my must try list…looks and sounds delicious, April. Thanks for sharing.
Have a great weekend…
Thank you, Marigene. I hope you had a lovely weekend 🙂
Your cake looks and sounds so delicious, thanks for this recipe!
Thank you, Rosie. I hope you enjoy making it!
I love blood orange this pound cake looks delicious April
Oh, April I love citrus cake too. I have never baked anything with blood oranges and I love them. Thank you for sharing this recipe with us on foodie friday… really wonderful.
This pound cake sounds absolutely delicious! I just adore that color the blood oranges give to the icing. How lovely 🙂
Thank you, Nicole! I love the colour blood oranges give icing too – it’s such a pretty pink 🙂
I cannot get enough pound cake – I love the stuff and in any flavor. Yours looks divine. Great job, April.
Thank you so much, Susie! I’m a big fan of pound cakes too 🙂
Wow, these pound cakes looks so delicious. I love the hint of citrus in them.
Thank you, Cindy 🙂
I must try this cake as blood oranges are in season all winter here in Florida! Thank you for sharing another wonderful recipe!
Thank you, Linda 🙂 How wonderful to have blood oranges in season for so long! We get about two months, sometimes three if we are lucky – of course they are all imported from Europe, the UK climate isn’t very citrus friendly!
What a delicious way to use blood oranges April!
Thank you, Nancy 🙂
April, this cake looks so moist and I must say those oranges make such a lovely color!
Thank you, Kecia. I love the colour blood oranges give things, especially glazes and icings!
This is a very nice recipe, I have never used blood oranges before. Can I replace egg, any suggestion please.
Thank you, Sadhna 🙂 I’m sorry, I have never made this recipe without eggs and they are a big part of the leavening. However I was searching some other websites and it seems you can make pound cake without eggs. If you Google ‘pound cake without eggs’ there are a number of recipes so you may be able to adapt my recipe. Good luck! Let me know how you get on!
Thanks dear, I will do that.
I love baking with blood oranges as well! They just add such a special flavor to baked goods. I’m going to have to try this before blood orange season is over!
I hope you and yours enjoy the cake as much as we do, Elizabeth 🙂
I’ve been loving blood oranges lately but I’ve never thought about putting them in a cake! YUM! This looks so good!
Thank you, Liz 🙂
April, this pound cake looks gorgeous and sounds amazing! I love the use of blood oranges in this. I just had some blood oranges on hand the other day and the next time I get some, I’ll have to keep this recipe in mind.
Thank you so much Marlynn 🙂 I hope you get a chance to give the recipe a try.
This blood orange pound cake looks delicious April, I need to find some to try this one.
Thank you, Swathi 🙂
This blood orange pound cake looks delicious April, I need to find some to try this one.
Love this recipe! You’re totally right– blood orange has such a gorgeous color! I’m also a big fan of citrus in my baked goods. It makes them taste so light and delicious. Can’t wait to try this!
Thank you, Alyssa! I agree, citrus really does make baked goods taste wonderfully light and delicious.
Pound cake is my favorite dessert! I have never had blood orange pound cake. What a wonderful idea! Amazing photos. I love that you reduced the sugar.
I love pound cake too, Brandi – and thank you 🙂
This pound cake looks absolutely gorgeous. I love that it’s moist! Oh and I have never tried making one with blood oranges. Thanks for the idea!
Thank you, Jovita!
If this is as tasty and moist as it looks and sounds, you have a winner on your hands!
It really is, Dan – and thank you 🙂
Even though I dislike winter, I love the winter citrus! The blood oranges ARE amazing! And a nice slice of cake on a winter day is just what I need!
Thank you, Emily.
I also love to incorporate Blood Oranges into recipes. My father in law absolutely loves them. I can’t wait to pass this recipe on.
Thank you, Tina 🙂
Pound cake is such a good dessert, I don’t know anyone who doesn’t enjoy it. Love the color the blood oranges give to the cake.
Thank you, Karen. Pound Cake really is a wonderful dessert 🙂
I love pound cakes and yours looks so delicious and inviting, April! Pinning and tweeting!
Thank you so much, Hadia, and thank you for sharing too!
Hi again, April. Blood oranges are my favourite since I was a child. Here in Valencia we have lots of orange tree fields and I love this type of recipes. Your pound cake looks fantastic. I’ll give it a try but butter less and sugarless. They’re forbidden for me. Olive oil is better for my health. Congrats!
Oh how wonderful to have oranges growing near to you, Marisa! Thank you 🙂
This looks so tasty. I would love to try some right now. Thanks for sharing at Creative Mondays 🙂 I will be featuring your cake later on the blog hop.
Thank you so much, Claire Justine – and thank you for the feature too! Have a lovely week ahead 🙂
Hope you are having a great day and thanks so much for sharing your awesome post with us at Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon
Miz Helen
Thank you so much, Miz Helen! Have a lovely week ahead!
April I cannot wait to make this! I’m a pound cake freak! Sometimes I’ll bake three a week. My wife makes me give them away! I’ve never come across a blood orange pound cake and I’m stoked!
Oh wow, 3 pound cakes a week! I’d have to make you give them away too or I’d eat them all 🙂 I’m really glad you like the recipe – please do let me know what you think if you make it 🙂
I have baked these in disposable loaf tins. I am wondering can I leave them to cool in those and just poke and add syrup? Or do you take them out to prevent them from getting soggy, and if that is the case can I leave them in and just add less syrup? Sorry for all the questions🙂
I’m always happy to answer questions, Jennifer, no worries. Please do leave the cakes in the disposable tins. Poke and add the syrup when they are still warm, and then let them cool before attempting to remove them from the tins. They won’t get soggy, although the cakes are lovely and moist. It does seem like a lot of syrup but honestly I’ve never had them get soggy. I haven’t made them in disposable tins before but I can’t see why it would be a problem. It might be slightly harder to remove the cakes from the tins, but if you wait until they are cool you will have the best chance of getting them out perfectly. I hope this helps. Please do let me know how it goes 🙂
Thank you for your response. I did leave them in the tins, and they turned out lovely. Thank you for the recipe.
Hi Jennifer, I’m so pleased to hear that! Thank you so much for letting me know 🙂 Have a lovely weekend!
The cake looks so good. I love citrus in my bakes and this one is beckoning me
Thank you!
I love blood orange – this cake sounds delicious! I’d be honored if you shared them and some of your other recipes at our What’s for Dinner party!
http://www.lazygastronome.com/whats-for-dinner-sunday-link-up-202/
Thank you, Helen! I will pop by a bit later 🙂
This looks INSANELY good April! I am LOVING the blood orange season, and I may try this recipe soon, as it looks so delicious.
Karen
Thank you, Karen! It really is a favourite amongst family and friends 🙂
Really not into pancakes so I thought I’d just take a quick look but I ended up checking everything. I had tried cooking similar stuff before and there is an online delivery service, that helped me out try some ingredients that are hard to find. Anyway, will forward this page to a couple of friends who are starting to get fond of cooking!
Your Blood Orange Pound Cake looks delicious, I love that blood orange! Hope you are having a great week and thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday and come back to see us soon!
Miz Helen
Thank you, Miz Helen! I love blood oranges too 🙂 I hope your week is a wonderful one!
Orange is such a lovely flavor to add to sweets. I haven’t heard of blood orange before.
It really is, Alexandra. Blood oranges are only in season for a limited time, depending on where you live. I only learned about them a few years ago too.
April, I love all things orange flavored! This Blood Orange Pound Cake looks fabulous, and I think that I could easily make it with gluten free flour. Thanks for a great recipe!
I’m so glad you like it, Leslie! Funnily enough, I was thinking just yesterday I would like to test the recipe with gluten free flour. Please let me know how it goes if you try it.
I’m so excited because a friend just gifted me some blood oranges from her tree! I can’t wait to try this recipe! It looks marvelous!
What perfect timing! I hope you enjoy the recipe as much as we do, Helen!
This looks so yummy, April! What a great combination of flavors!
Thank you, Laura!
I baked this cake to give as a birthday gift. It turned out beautifully and the recipient gave it rave reviews. I’ll be making it again, for sure!
Oh, that’s lovely, Beth! I’m so pleased to hear that. Thank you!