Flourless Orange Cake

Flourless Orange Cake
Originally uploaded by donna_3011

Melbourne Central used to house the Japanese department store Daimaru. It was an upmarket sort of place with a whole section of the toy department devoted to Hello Kitty and elsewhere designer t-shirt sold for $200. I once had a present gift wrapped and I marveled at the intricate folding that went into it all. I left the gift wrapping room with a handsome package printed with the trademark green and white logo and I thought for a moment I should keep it for myself.

Whilst working in the Melbourne Central Tower and during farewells/birthdays/project manager-feeling-generous, we used to be given free reign to purchase cakes from Daimaru. The flourless cakes were always a favourite, and now flourlessness in cakes will always remind me of Daimaru.

I always liked the almond flavouring and moistness of a flourless cake. It's more robust than a sponge but not as dense as a mud cake. It doesn't need a thick coating of often discarded cream topping or icing to make it look and taste delicious.

Sadly, in 2002 after a decade of trading and never turning a profit Daimaru closed its doors. I guess it was a little too upmarket considering those door buster/$50-TV sales still existed just up the road at Myer. Now I only partake in flourless cakes by the slice at cafes and restaurants with fond remembrance of Daimaru.

These days the whole configuration of Melbourne Central is different. The majority of the white foyer of the office towers is now replaced by eateries and the curve that was once the entrance into Daimaru has been demolished but it was set back so deeply that it was located somewhere inside one of the numerous cafes that now exist on Elizabeth street.

To those who remember and to those who only ever knew the era of Max Brenner around the corner, a recipe of nostalgia and of just yumminess.

http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/14822/flourless+orange+cake

Though my oven is pretty reliable, I had to bake it for an extra 30 minutes for the skewer test to return clean.
I used icing sugar instead of the syrup as I thought it would keep better on its own.