Citrus Cake Pt 1

CAKE
3 c Cake Flour; sifted
1 ts Baking Powder
1/2 ts Baking Soda
1/2 ts Salt
1 md Seedless Orange; cut into
-eight sections
2 c Granulated Sugar; (divided)
2 lg Eggs; separated
1 c Buttermilk
1/2 c Canola Oil
1 ts Vanilla
2 lg Egg Whites
Sprig of fresh Mint for
-Garnish; (Optional)

If your New Year’s resolutions include an effort to eat better in
1999, you’re going to enjoy the month of January at Recipe-a-Day. The
Cook & Kitchen Staff are just over halfway through 31 days of
Recipe-a-Day~Light.

Today, we’re offering you a fantastically fresh dessert that defies
your good taste in that each serving contains about 245 calories. As
difficult as it may be to believe that something so good can be good
for you, you will enjoy dessert tonight even more because each
service contains only 4 grams of fat and .05 grams of saturated fat.
At this rate, we’ll join you in a second piece of cake.

To prepare the candied oranges, scrub the outside of the oranges well
and dry the fruit. Cut the oranges into paper-thin slices.

In a wide pan, mix the water with the sugar. Bring the mixture to a
simmer over a low heat setting and stir gently to dissolve the sugar.
Add the orange slices and poach the fruit. Keep the liquid simmering
and occasionally pour the simple syrup over the fruit with a ladle.
Simmer until the skins are translucent, about 2 hours. Gently
transfer the orange slices to a sheet of wax paper and let cool.
Reserve about 1/2 cup of the syrup for the cake glaze.

To prepare the orange cake, preheat the oven to 350-F degrees and
lightly oil a 10-inch angel food cake pan. Line the bottom of the pan
with a ring of parchment paper.

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together sifted flour, baking
powder, soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a food processor or blender, pulse or chop the orange sections
until the fruit is finely chopped. Add 1 1/2 cups of sugar and
process until the mixture is smooth. Add 2 egg yolks, buttermilk,
canola oil, and vanilla, and pulse or blend again to combine the
ingredients. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, beat the 4 egg whites with a hand-held electric
mixer on a medium-high speed setting until soft peaks form. Gradually
add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, continuing to beat the egg whites
until they are stiff and glossy peaks form.

Add half the dry ingredients to the orange mixture and fold with a
whisk until just blended. Add the remaining dry ingredients and blend
again. Whisk about a third of the egg whites into the cake batter.
Gently fold in the remaining egg whites. Pour the batter into the
prepared cake pan and gently tap it on the counter to remove any air
bubbles.

Bake the orange cake for 55 to 65 minutes, or until a cake tester
inserted into the center of the cake can be cleanly removed. Let the
cake cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then gently loosen the
sides of the cake from the pan and invert on a wire rack to cool
completely.

To serve, place the cooled cake on a serving plate and brush well
with the reserved 1/2 cup