Sundays, Sleep & Scrumptious!

We wake at 4.30am most mornings at our place and to be honest, I am not one of those people who cope very well without a decent, uninterrupted chunk of sleep. Thank heavens for Sunday mornings!

We treated ourselves, turned off the alarm & deliberately slept in till 10am - it was bliss! I dreamed deeply of a large, dark-brown brick house, almost Tudor in style. It was not my house and was surrounded by a dense forest of beautiful trees. I can still smell the damp, earthy smells of layers of fallen leaves. It was so real, magical & peaceful all at the same time.

Well slept, I was in the mood for cooking the afternoon away. I made a chicken & tomato casserole for dinner and a flourless/gluten-free/dairy-free, Moist Orange & Poppy-Seed cake, which should come with a warning - it's scrumptious! The trick is to cook it till it's done (pulling away from the sides of the tin), yet remains moist.

You will need;

2 x Oranges - tops removed & scored with a cross (3cm or 1" deep)
6 x large (600g) eggs
250g caster sugar (conversion here)
250g almond meal (conversion here)
3 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
2 teaspoons poppy-seeds

Place prepared oranges in boiling water & simmer for 50 mins. Remove and puree the entire orange (peel included) until smooth, in a food processor.

Pre heat oven to 160deg C (farenheit here)

In a large mixing bowl, whisk eggs & sugar until light & fluffy. Add the almond meal & baking powder. Mix until combined.

Stir in the orange puree & poppy-seeds, then pour the mixture into a 22cm (8") cake tin, lined with baking paper.

Bake in oven for 40 mins, or until firm (may need to cook for up to 50 mins, depending on oven)

Leave to cool in the tin, then turn on to a wire rack.

(cake is suitable for freezing)

Enjoy!