You can see why this is known as an orange “stained glass” cake. It has a very unique presentation. Also it tastes terrific, which is always a plus. It’s very creamy and Christmas-y with all the candied orange, and delivers a slight alcohol kick. A perfect light closer to a winter evening meal.
READ ONThis is a Gaston Lenôtre classic, but I’ll be using components from the blog here to put it together. The original recipe uses one of those old foil cake layer pans — the kind you can sometimes still find in supermarkets — as a mold. You can use a 9″ round cake layer pan as a substitute, if you have one with sloping sides so much the better. In an ideal world the oranges should be sliced on a mandoline, since that gives the best presentation. If you don’t have one, a steady hand works almost as well. You’ll need:
1 large navel orange
1 cup (8 ounces) water
1 cup (8 ounces) sugar
2 tablespoons Grand Marnier
about 2 1/2 cups diplomat cream
1 recipe génoise baked in a 9″ round cake pan