Orange and Raspberry Cake ~ by Molly

 Since I don't have an oven in Saarbrücken, I've been stockpiling recipes I find for a while. When I went home, I decided to try this one I had found on FoodNetwork.com for Grace's postponed birthday party. The frosting is DELICIOUS (but then again, when is frosting not delicious?)

Cake:

1 box white cake mix (Giada recommends Duncan Hines, but Betty Crocker worked just fine)

1 large orange, zested

1 1/3 cups no pulp orange juice (Mom bought the frozen kind, so I had to prepare it first)

3 egg whites

2 T oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour two 8-inch cake pans.

In an electric mixer, whisk cake mix and orange zest until well incorporated. Add orange juice, egg whites and oil.

Mix on low for about 30 seconds, then medium for two minutes, scraping the sides  occasionally.

Divide batter evenly and bake on the center rack for about 30 minutes, or until it passes the toothpick test.

Let cool for about 15 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack for about another hour.

Frosting:

1 stick unsalted butter, just under room temperature

1 brick cream cheese

1 bag powdered sugar

1/4 cup seedless raspberry jam

Mix butter and cream cheese until smooth. Slowly add powdered sugar and mix until well blended. Add jam. If the frosting is too thick to spread, add water, one teaspoon at a time, until it's spreadable.

Assembly:

Place one cooled cake on a baking platter round side down. Spread on a thin layer of frosting. I now know that putting this in the freezer for about a half hour would have my life much easier. I went ahead and immediately spread on a thin layer of jam, which got messy with the the soft frosting beneath it.

Place the next layer on the cake. Again, I should have put this in the freezer for a little while to harden the frosting/jam in the center. I had issues keeping my top layer from shifting around and squeezing out the middle layer while I finished frosting it.

Frost the rest of the cake and store, covered, in the fridge. Allow to sit for about 30 minutes at room temp before serving.

Had I known better, I would have put this in the freezer until the frosting was solid before adding the next layer.