Step 1

In a medium size bowl, add the sugar and orange zest. Using your clean fingers, massage the zest into the sugar. Doing this will release the oil from the orange zest.

Step 2

Pour the mixture into a small saucepan and add the egg yolks, whole eggs, pinch of salt, orange juice, cornstarch and lemon juice. Whisk everything until well combined.

Step 3

Place pan over medium heat and stir constantly so the mixture heats up evenly.

Step 4

Continue to whisk until the mixture has thickened. The mixture has thickened when it coats the back of a spoon.

Step 5

Turn off the heat and stir in the butter.

Step 6

Pour the hot mixture through a strainer to remove any clumps and ensure the curd is smooth and lump free.

Step 7

Place a plastic wrap on top of the curd to prevent a skin forming. Place in the fridge to chill for about 2 hours or until it is set.

Step 8

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and line a 9” cake round pan with parchment paper.

Step 9

In a large bowl, add the sugar and orange zest. Using your clean fingers, massage the zest into the sugar. Doing this will release the oil from the orange zest.

Step 10

Add the two eggs, vanilla extract and whisk for about 30 seconds to 1 minute until mixture is light and fluffy.

Step 11

Now add the olive oil, orange juice and yogurt. Mix everything together really well.

Step 12

In a separate bowl, sift in the dry ingredients : all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients in two parts and mix gently until combined. Do not over mix the batter.Tip: Do not over mix the batter. Just mix until just combined. I suggest using a spatula to incorporate the flour.

Step 13

Pour the batter into your greased and lined with parchment paper round cake pan.

Step 14

Place the pan on the middle rack and bake for about 35 minutes or until golden all over and when gently pressed , it springs back and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Step 15

Once the cake is done, Allow the cake to cool for 10-13 minutes in the pan before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely. Optional Step: For extra moisture, you can gently poke some holes all over the top of the cake while it's still warm and spread either 2 tbsp of orange blossom sugar syrup or 1 Tbsp of olive oil over the cake.

Step 16

In a large bowl, beat the heavy cream with powdered sugar until medium stiff peaks form. Optional: You can add either vanilla extract or orange extract to the whipped cream.

Step 17

The cake needs to be cooled completely before decorating. This is a very important step.

Step 18

Top the cooled cake with the whipped cream and using an angled icing spatula, spread the whipped cream gently. Dollop some chilled citrus curd over the whipped cream and using the spatula, spread it out. Be creative, see image for reference. Decorate the cake with dried oranges slices, orange zest, squeeze some blood orange juice for color, and delicate/ edible flowers.

Step 19

If serving this cake for an occasion ( dinner party, brunch, birthday etc. ), I love to place a bowl of orange curd on the table right by the cake for guests to have the option to top with extra orange curd. Enjoy!