Orange Sunshine Cake

Cake Ingredients:*
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 3/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 tablespoon finely grated orange peel
3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup orange juice
Topping Ingredients:
1 can (11 oz.) mandarin orange sections
3 tablespoons sugar
1 cup whipping cream
2-4 tablespoons powder sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
mint leaves for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour 9×13 cake pan or 2- 9” round cake pans. Cream together sugar and butter. Add eggs and beat well. Add vanilla and orange peel, beat well. Stir baking powder and salt into flour.

Alternating, add flour and juice (1/3 at a time) to sugar/butter mixture, beating well after each addition. Spread cake batter in prepared cake pan(s). Bake 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake completely.

Drain mandarin oranges, reserving juice. Measure 1/3-cup mandarin juice and combine with 3 tablespoons sugar; place in small saucepan and cover. Over medium heat, bring to a boil. Boil 2 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat and cool. Brush over cake.

Add powder sugar and vanilla to whipping cream. Whip until stiff peaks form. Spread over cooled cake. Arrange drained orange slices on cake. Garnish with mint leaves. Serve within 1 hour. Serves 12.

*NOTES: May substitute commercial cake mix for scratch cake above. Combine 1 box cake mix (18 oz.) with 1/2 cup melted butter, 3 eggs, 1 1/4 cups orange juice and 1 tablespoon finely grated orange peel. Beat well. Follow baking instructions above.

Stabilized Whipping Cream Stabilized in this manner, whipped cream will keep in the refrigerator for 4-5 days without separating. Nice timesavings.