Blood orange glazed chocolate loaf! A delicious combination. Rich chocolate cake that is so fluffy with pops of citrus throughout. I absolutely love this loaf cake! I initially intended for this to be a vanilla loaf, but after trying the recipe out a few times, I fell in love with chocolate the most.
Blood oranges are a delicious winter citrus. I enjoy juicing them, using them for cocktails, baking with them and even incorporating them into salads or salad dressings. Aside from being so yummy! Their flesh is just so gorgeous. Blood orange glazed chocolate loaf is a surprisingly harmonious combination! The flavors work deliciously together.
Blood oranges are easy to find this time of year. They are in the produce section next to all of the citrus. If you’ve never tried them before, grab them if you see them! They taste like a cross between an orange, a grapefruit and berries. SO GOOD.
The fluffy chocolate batter contains a few tablespoons of freshly squeezed blood orange juice and some of the zest to really give it a strong citrus flavor. This loaf is super moist and not overly sweet! I use a bit of sour cream inside the batter to make it extra rich. I bake the loaf in a 10×5 loaf pan, but you can also use a 9×5.
The glaze on top of this loaf cake is so GOOD and so fresh! It’s only 3 ingredients! Very easy to make.
blood orange glaze
- Powdered sugar
- Blood orange juice
- zest
- Vanilla
I whisk the blood orange juice, zest and vanilla into the powdered sugar until a nice thick glaze forms. Then, I pour it over the cooled loaf. It’s the perfect amount of sweetness and citrus to really compliment the chocolate-y richness. For more richness, you can add some chocolate ganache on top as well, but totally optional!
Blood Orange Glazed Chocolate Loaf
Equipment
- Loaf pan 10×5 or 9×5
- Mixing Bowls
- Parchment Paper
- Spatulas
- Whisk
Ingredients
Chocolate Loaf
- 1½ cups flour spooned and leveled
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 1 cup + 2 tbs sugar
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp blood orange zest
- ⅓ cup sour cream
- ½ cup neutral oil grape seed, vegetable, or sunflower
- 3 tbs blood orange juice freshly squeezed
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ½ cup boiling water
Blood Orange Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- ¼ tsp vanilla
- 2-4 tbs blood orange juice freshly squeezed
- 1 tsp blood orange zest
Instructions
Chocolate Loaf
- Preheat the oven to 350°
- In a bowl, add the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking soda, baking powder & salt. Whisk to combine.
- In another bowl, add your eggs, zest, sour cream, oil, blood orange juice and vanilla. Stir to incorporate everything.
- Next, fold your wet mixture into your dry mixture until well combined, Don't over mix. lastly, slowly add in the boiling water. Stir until it's all absorbed into the batter. Pour into your loaf pan lined with parchment paper. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the center is set. Let the loaf cool before topping with your glaze. Slice and enjoy!
Glaze
- Add your powdered sugar to a mixing bowl. Next, add in the zest, vanilla and blood orange juice 1 tbs at a time. The glaze should be pourable but thick.
Notes
- The addition of sour cream makes this cake super most and fluffy.
- I like to use neutral oil in this batter so the flavor does not overwhelm. Grape seed, vegetable, or sunflower oil works best.
- Adding the boiling water at the end is a great way to enhance the cocoa powder in the batter and also yield a better texture.
- I added a drizzle of chocolate ganache to mine. Totally optional, but SO GOOD!
