Cooking Class--HOLIDAY CAKES--Starring "The Orange"

ORANGE DELIGHT

1 (6 oz) pkg orange flavored gelatin

2 cups boiling water
1 qt vanilla ice cream
1 (11 oz) can mandarin oranges
1 medium angel food cake

Dissolve gelatin in boiling water; add ice cream and undrained orange segments; stir until the ice cream melts. Chill until partially set. Tear cake into bite size pieces. Fold into gelatin mix. Pour into oiled 3 quart mold. Chill until firm.

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DELICIOUS ORANGE SPONGE CAKE

Ungreased 10-inch tube pan.
Preheat oven to 250 degrees
6 large eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups white sugar
Juice and grated rind of one orange
1 1/2 cups white flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Place egg whites in a small deep mixing bowl and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. In a large mixing bowl beat the egg yolks, sugar, orange juice and grated peel. (Measure orange juice--there should be a total of 8 Tbsp of liquid.)  Beat on high speed until mixture is thick and lemon colored.

Sift the flour and salt together. Add flour gradually to the first mixture and beat smooth. Beat egg whites with the cream of tartar until they stand in firm, but not stiff peaks. Gently fold this into the batter and continue folding until all is blended. As gently as possible pour this into the tube pan and bake for 20 minutes at 250 degrees. Increasse oven temperature to 325 degrees and finish baking about 40 minutes. Turn off the oven and alow cake to "set" in the oven for 10 minutes longer. Leave ake in pan and invert on rack until cold.

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ORANGE ALMOND FIG CAKE

10 dried figs
2 1/2 cups plus 2 Tbsp flour; divided
1/2 cup ground almonds
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
Finely grated peel (zest) of one orange
1/3 cup sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 10 inch tube pan with oil. Remove stems from figs; cut figs into eighths. In a small bowl, toss figs with 2 Tbsp flour. In a medium bowl, combine remaining 2 1/2 cups flour, ground almonds, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.  In a large bowl, beat sugar, oil and eggs with the mixer on medium speed. Beat for 2 to 3 minutes or until thick and creamy. Add flour mixture alternately with orange juice, mixing until blended. Add figs and orange peel; stir just until blended. Pour batter into prepared pan; sprinkle with sliced almonds. Bake 50 - 60 degrees or until the cake tests done. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Remove from pan to cool completely.  If you wish: make a glaze of orange juice and powdered sugar and drizzle over the cake.