Orange & Honey Upside-down Cake

Here is my deliciously wholesome and "healthy" Orange and Honey Cake recipe; made with fresh oranges, honey, olive oil, ground almonds & pinenuts. The yummy oranges on top are caramelized in honey and vanilla for an aromatic marmalade-like taste. The sponge is so fluffy & moist, with toasted pinenuts and orange zest for extra texture and taste. I was surprised at how good this cake turned out, but using olive oil instead of butter really works and makes for a lovely soft and tasty dairy-free sponge.

Ingredients

For the topping:
100ml water
250ml honey
1tsp vanilla bean paste
2 large fresh oranges, thinly sliced

For the cake:
4 large eggs
220g golden caster sugar
1tsp vanilla extract
150g self-raising flour (wholemeal if you have it)
110g ground almonds
150g olive oil
75g pinenuts, toasted (optional)
zest of 1 orange

Preheat the oven to 160°C and lightly oil a loose-bottomed 25cm ring tin, or a 20cm circular tin.

Pour the honey, water & vanilla into a saucepan, add the sliced oranges, then simmer for about 15minutes until the oranges are soft and the liquid has reduced.

Meanwhile, put the eggs, sugar & vanilla into a bowl and whisk for about 10minutes until they are thick and pale. Sift the flour into the egg mixture, then fold through with a metal spoon. Add the ground almonds, olive oil, pinenuts and orange zest. Continue to gently fold the mixture until everything is just mixed.

Arrange the cooked oranges in a nice pattern in the base of your tin. Pour over all of the honey-syrup. Dollop the cake mixture on top, then bake for 40-45minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Leave to cool in the tin for about 10minutes before turning out upside-down onto your serving plate. Serve warm or cold.

Serving suggestion: To make it extra special try eating it warm served with a dollop of greek yoghurt and extra honey drizzled over the top.