Fanta Slice/Orange and Curd Cheese Cake

So another Hungarian cake. Although you won't find it in any cake shop, this is truly home baking. It isn't sweet, as the main purpose of the cake to cool you down at summer, when temperatures reaches over 30C...but that doesn't mean, you have to live in a warm country to have this. I made this cake for my workplace for my Birthday so I couldn't slice it up to have a nice picture. I also changed my own recipe as the original filling is with butter, but I try to eat as less calories as possible currently.

Fanta Slice

(Orange and Curd Cheese Cake)

For the sponge
3 eggs
pinch of salt
3 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp plain flour
3 tbsp cocoa powder
50ml vegetable oil
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp bicarbonate of baking powder

For the filling
250g curd cheese
200ml double cream
1 vanilla pod
3 tbsp icing sugar

For the top
3 oranges(optional, originally we don't have it on the top)
7dl Fanta orange
2-3 tbsp sugar
2 Puding powder-custard flavoured-in polish shop ask for Budyn smietankowym *more on this at Tricks and Recommendations

Preheat the oven to 180C and line a 19X25cm cake tin.

Separate the eggs then with a pinch of salt beat the egg whites until it form stiff peaks. While continuously mixing with an electrical mixer add the egg yolks, then the sugar and the oil(mixing between each addition). 

Sift in the flour, cocoa powder, bicarbonate of soda and the baking powder in two lots, carefully folding in the mixture.

 If you rush this step you can ruin your whole cake. Two typical mistakes: not folding thoroughly and you will have small lumps of flour in the ready sponge, or you mix it too vigorously and you break up the air bubbles in the mixture(that you created with the mixer) and it won't rise at all in the oven.

Bake for 15-20minutes, or until the inserted wooden skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool then take it out from the pan.

For the filling

Whip the double cream until stiff peaks then add the curd cheese, vanilla seeds and the icing sugar and mix it again. If you prefer the more sweet cake than the sourish refreshing one, add 3 more tablespoon of icing sugar into the mix.

For the top, peel the oranges, cut them half then slice them to 0.5cm pieces. 

Heat 5dl Fanta in a heavy based pan, with 2 tbsp sugar until boiling, meanwhile in a small bowl mix the Puding powder with the remaining of the Fanta to avoid lumps in the liquid later on. Pour the mixture into the fanta while stirring constantly. Within 1-2minutes it should reach a thick creamy, puding texture. Take off the heat and stirring occasionally to cool it down to room temperature just before to set.

To assemble

Line your tin with baking paper. The paper should be higher than the side of the cake by at least 3cm. When the cake will be ready you need that 3cm handle to lift the cake out from the pan.

Place your sponge in the tin then spoon over the curd cheese filling and slightly press it down with a spoon. We want to achieve a stiff, levelled filling with no gaps on the sides. If you leave some gaps on the sides the jelly will go all the way to the bottom.

Even if your sponge shrink a little and it isn't covering the bottom side to side, fill up the gap with the filling. Arrange the orange slices on top and pour your Fanta mixture on top.

Rest the cake in the fridge for at least 3hours preferably over night.

When it is ready, just lift the cake out of the tin, slice and serve.