Creamy Orange Bites

These snack-size cakes taste just like orange ice cream bars. The hit of nostalgia makes them perfect for parties, but best make sure you taste-test them along the way, because they’ll be gone in a flash.

MAKES: 72 bites

PREP TIME: 1 hour

COOKING TIME: about 40 minutes

CHILLING TIME: about 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

CAKE:

• 2 cups carbonated orange soft drink
• 4 cups cake-and-pastry flour OR 3 ½ cups all-purpose flour sifted with ½ cup cornstarch
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 ½ tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla extract

FROSTING:

• 1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened
• 4 cups icing sugar, sifted
• 1 Tbsp whipping cream (35%)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• Orange gel food colouring
• Orange sprinkles for garnish

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Grease two 9-inch round baking pans with butter, then dust them lightly with flour.
2. For the cake, pour the orange drink into a pitcher and stir until the bubbles disappear and the drink is no longer fizzy. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour (or the flour and cornstarch), baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
4. In a large bowl and using an electric mixer, beat the butter with the sugar until pale and fluffy.
5. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract. Beat in the orange drink until well combined.
6. Add the flour mixture to the sugar mixture, stirring just until incorporated (do not overmix).
7. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared baking pans. Tap the pans lightly on the counter a couple of times to release any air bubbles.
8. Bake until the cakes are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the centre of each cake comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes.
9. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of the cakes to loosen them. Carefully remove the cakes from the pans and let cool completely on a wire rack.
10. When cool, break the cakes into coarse crumbs and place them in a large bowl.
11. For the frosting, cream the butter with ½ cup of the icing sugar in a medium microwaveable bowl. Gradually add the remaining icing sugar, beating until the mixture is smooth. Beat in the cream and vanilla extract.
12. Scrape half of the frosting into a second medium bowl. Add enough food colouring to this second bowl of frosting to tint it bright orange.
13. Add the orange frosting to the cake crumbs, stirring until well combined. Form the cake mixture into seventy-two 1-inch balls.
14. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
15. Microwave the bowl of white frosting on high power for 10-second intervals, stirring after each interval, until the frosting is the consistency of very thick pancake batter and coats the back of a spoon.
16. Using two forks, dip each cake ball into the warm white frosting to coat completely. As each ball is coated, lift it out with a fork, letting any excess frosting drip off. Place each ball on the prepared baking sheet and garnish with orange sprinkles.
17. When all the balls are coated and garnished, refrigerate them until the frosting is set. Place the balls in paper liners before serving.

BAKING DAY SECRETS

• If the white frosting begins to set while you’re dipping the cake balls, warm it in the microwave on high power for 5-second intervals until it melts a little.