Orange Dreamsicle Cake

Orange dreamsicle cake is a light, luscious cloud of angel food cake filled with a creamy orange mousse, and iced with orange buttercream. It’s a lovely spring or summer dessert. With its refreshing citrus and vanilla flavor, this cake is reminiscent of an old fashioned creamsicle or dreamsicle ice cream bar.

This orange dreamsicle cake was my dad’s favorite. Every year, mom would make it for his birthday, and after my parents got divorced, I’d make it for him. Memories of how delicious it is have filled my head with orange flavored dreams for years! (This post was originally published on April 15th, 2014 )

If you love orange, you’ll really going to love this cake! It’s also the perfect dessert for to accompany Easter dinner. The original recipe comes from her 1957 Ford Treasury of Favorite Recipes from Famous Eating Places Cookbook.

The little cookbooks were given away by the Ford Motor Company, maybe as a promotion? It features recipes from restaurants all over the country. This recipe was from Port’s Tea Room & Coffee Shop in St. Paul, Minnesota.

There are three components to this orange dreamsicle cake recipe. Each of the components can be made a day or two ahead. Then the cake can be assembled the day you plan to serve it. 

• a plain angel food cake.
• an orange filling made with homemade orange curd and whipped cream filling.
• homemade orange buttercream.

For a lighter, lower calorie dessert

Feel free to skip the orange buttercream if you prefer a lighter dessert and just finish the cake using the filling as the “frosting.”

Homemade angel food cake

The following recipe is for a basic angel food cake with it is the basis for this dessert. If you want to save time, use a store-bought angel food cake and just prepare the orange buttercream and orange filling. You could also use the filling and frosting to dress up a store bought pound cake, your favorite white cake mix,  or a plain vanilla layer cake. It’s the filling and frosting are what really make this cake fantastic!

Ingredients for angel food cake

• 1 cup cake flour
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar divided
• 12 egg whites
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

How to make the angel food cake

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a bowl, sift together the flour, and 3/4 cup of the sugar, set aside.
• In a large bowl of your stand mixer, whip the egg whites at high speed, until soft peaks form.
• Add the vanilla, cream of tartar and salt, and continue whipping until medium stiff peaks form.
• Gradually add the remaining sugar, while continuing to whip whites to stiff peaks.
• After stiff peaks form, fold in the sifted ingredients gradually, one third at a time. Do not over-mix. Pour the cake batter into at 10″ Tube Pan, gently smoothing top of the cake with an offset spatula.
• Bake for 40 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven, until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Flip the tube pan upside down and allow to cool completely. 
• When cool, run a knife around the edge of the pan and invert onto a plate. Wrap with plastic wrap and store at room temperature until ready to assemble.
• Angel food cake can be made a day in advance.

Ingredients for orange filling

This filling has fresh orange zest and is similar to a mock mousse, with a homemade orange curd filling folded into homemade whipped cream. You can save time by using a store-bought Orange Curd and just folding it into the whipped cream.

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 whole eggs
• 4 Tablespoons all-purpose  flour
• Juice and zest two oranges
• 1 pint heavy cream

How to make the orange filling

• Combine all the ingredients, except for the heavy cream, in the top of a double boiler.

• Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, about 7 to 8 minutes, or until mixture coats the back of a spoon.

• When thick, remove and cool. Place curd in an ice bath to speed up the process.

• Meanwhile in an electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, on medium speed, whip cream until stiff peaks form. Carefully scrape down sides of bowl.
• When cool, gently fold orange curd into whipped cream.

• Chill in an airtight container until ready to assemble the cake

Tip! If you don’t own a double boiler, place a slightly smaller saucepan inside a larger one filled with boiling water.

Orange buttercream ingredients

• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 Tablespoons fresh orange juice
•  2 Tablespoons orange zest

Making the orange buttercream 

• Beat butter in a mixer until light and fluffy.
• Add sugar, vanilla, juice and zest and continue mixing at low speed until blended.

Assembling the orange dreamsicle cake

• Cut the cake into thirds.

• Divide the filling between the layers.

• Fill the center hole with remaining orange cream filling. Smooth any filling around the cake.

• Frost the top and sides of the cake with orange any remaining orange filling. For a lighter dessert, skip the buttercream!
• Chill before finishing with orange buttercream.

• Decorate top of the frosted cake with fresh orange blossoms and orange slices.

For a true old fashioned dreamsicle dessert, serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Looking for more orange desserts?

Orange Posset

Orange Pistachio Shortbread

Try this delicious Orange Cake recipe using a whole orange.