Blood Orange Tea Cake

Serves plain or with honey-blood orange compote (supreme 3 blood oranges and drizzle 1 to 2 teaspoons of honey over top, let sit for 5 minutes and stir gently) and whipped cream.

Ingredients:
butter for greasing pan
3 blood oranges
1 cup granulated sugar
scant 1/2 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt
3 large eggs
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup spelt flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt


Preparing the cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9- by 5-inch loaf pan. Grate the zest from 2 blood oranges and place in a large bowl with sugar. Using your fingers, rub ingredients together until orange zest is evenly distributed in sugar (sugar will be an orange color).

Supreme 2 oranges and break up segments with your fingers to about 1/4-inch pieces.

Halve remaining orange and squeeze 1/4 cup of juice into a bowl. Add buttermilk or yogurt to juice until you have 2/3 cup liquid altogether. Pour mixture into bowl with sugar and whisk well. Whisk in eggs and then olive oil.

In another bowl, whisk together all purpose flour, spelt flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a spatula or wooden spoon, gently stir dry ingredients into wet ones. Fold in pieces of orange segments. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake cake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until it is golden and a knife inserted into center comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes, then unmold and cool to room temperature.