This mandarin orange cake is buttery-soft with a jammy crumb and a crisp streusel topping. Think cookie crumble, but in cake form.
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This is not a fancy cake.
This is a cozy cake.
A soft, buttery little cake - somewhere between shortbread and cookie bar - with golden edges, jammy fruit, and the kind of crumbly streusel that makes you feel like a baking genius.
It's the cake you bake on a regular, non-spectacular day when you've got a couple cans of mandarin oranges in the back of the pantry and a craving for something sweet, and soft, and golden, and full of love.
Something that's got:
- A buttery-soft dough that's halfway between shortbread and cookie.
- Sweet little sunny mandarin segments that bake into soft, jammy citrus layer.
- A crumbly almondy streusel on top that makes you feel like you really did something
Something that takes almost zero effort.
Because: ONE dough does double duty - base and streusel topping. No mixer. No eggs. No fuss. Just a bowl, a spoon, a 10-minute prep and 30-minute bake between you and a mandarin orange streusel cake that feels homemade in the very best way.
Now sum this all up and you've got your... go-to recipe for a fruity, crumbly, speedy cake.
Ingredients for This Mandarin Orange Cake Recipe
The usual suspects, of course: Flour, sugar, and vegan butter (or margarine). Six simple ingredients in total, the other three being:
- Canned mandarin oranges: Such a nostalgic ingredient! The mandarin oranges add sweetness, moisture, and a fruity pop without extra prep.
- Almonds: The combo of ground almonds in the dough and the streusel gives the cake texture. Love that contrast between soft and crumbly.
- Citrus zest (lemon or orange): A bright touch for the dough (and streusel) for an extra citrussy kick. Fresh and zippy - aka mandatory.
What to Bake It In
If you're going for that cookie bar vibe, bake the cake in a small square or rectangular pan. I use a 20x20 cm (8x8 inch) square pan.
A round springform pan works, too! I'd recommend a smaller one - about 22 cm (about 9 inches) in diameter.
🍽 Recipe
Go-To Mandarin Orange Cake Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 small cans of mandarin oranges, each about 175 g / 6 oz (or one cup) drained weight
- 200 g room-temperature margarine or vegan butter
- 100 g sugar (plus one tablespoon for sprinkling)
- 250 g all-purpose flour (If you're in Germany: Any light flour, such as wheat flour 405 or 550, or spelt flour 630 works great)
- 150 g ground almonds
- ½ teaspoon lemon or orange zest
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F (top and bottom heat).
- Drain the mandarin oranges. (You can save the juice to drink or use it in another dessert-it's sweet and delicious!)
- Combine all dough ingredients-vegan butter/margarine, sugar, flour, ground almonds, and citrus zest-and knead into a dough.
- Press about ⅔ of the dough into a small baking dish lined with parchment paper.
- Distribute the drained mandarin oranges over the dough.
- Crumble the remaining ⅓ of the dough over the mandarins as a streusel topping. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of sugar.
- Bake in the middle of the oven for about 30 minutes. Keep an eye on it-if the streusel starts browning too quickly, move the cake to a lower rack and finish baking. It's done when the streusel topping is golden brown.
- Let cool slightly before slicing-best enjoyed warm or at room temp.
How to Best Enjoy It
You can have it all to yourself (grab a piece straight from the pan and devour it standing between two errands ... I'd totally get it).
Or bring it to your book club, a potluck, a family gathering, or any other occasion with people who love a fruity, crumbly, citrussy, perfectly sweet dessert (aka any gathering?).
I brought it to a friend's afternoon tea. We sat in their springy garden with cups of tea and this sunny citrus streusel cake, shooing away greedy bees.
Oh, and if you feel like it, go and add a dollop of vegan yogurt or a heap of (not-too-sweet) whipped cream.
FAQs
Totally! I can see this working beautifully with other canned fruits like cherries, sour cherries (maybe add an extra teaspoon of sugar over the fruit layer), and pineapple. Anything canned with a fruity freshness.
Absolutely. Just double all the ingredients and use a larger baking dish. Don't forget to also double the extra tablespoon of sugar for sprinkling.
You might need to add a few extra minutes to the baking time, just keep an eye on those golden streusel crumbs (they shouldn't turn dark brown).
Either works! If you've got whole almonds (they don't need to be blanched), just blitz them in a food processor or nut grinder until fine. Don't overdo it or you'll end up with almond butter.
Yes! If you don't have vegan butter on hand, you can sub in 160 g neutral oil + 40 g water - that's about ¾ cup oil + 3 tablespoons water - to replace the 200 g vegan butter. The dough might be a bit softer. Go for a neutral oil like rapeseed or sunflower; if you're feeling extra special you can use a butter-flavored oil, like this here.
Credits
This cozy little mandarin orange cake is inspired by the Mandarinenkuchen from the lovely German blog Was Eigenes, all the credit goes to the author, Sabine Güllich. I gave it a planty little twist by swapping the butter for vegan butter/margarine and adding some citrus zest for a bit of zing. And voilà!
More Fruity Cake & Muffin Recipes
If fruity desserts are up your alley, you might also enjoy these recipes:
- Spice Rhubarb Cake With Polenta
- Raspberry Muffins With Hazelnuts
- Romanian Pear & Walnut Cake
- Ginger Muffins With Pears & Chocolate
- Apple & Quinces Crumble
Enjoy,
Ramona
PS: If you try it, tell me in the comments how it turned out. I'm always curious.
♥
Christine Forster-Jones says
Can I use fresh mandarin oranges instead of canned?
Ramona Winkler says
Yes, absolutely. Choose ripe, juicy ones. Peel and deseed them, then use them just like the canned ones in the recipe (no draining needed, of course).
Angela Walker says
This is a simple recipe that yields an elegant, bright, DELICIOUS cake. I'm not usually a fan of mandarin oranges, but this recipe will absolutely stay in my rotation. Thank you so much for sharing this!
Ramona Winkler says
Hi Angela, thank you sooo much for your kind words! This cake is a favorite of my family - I’m happy that it won you over, even though you’re not usually a fan of mandarins (= the ultimate compliment!).