One of my favorite parts about Morocco is how often cake is eaten for breakfast, for snack, for a pre-dinner appetizer…pretty much any time of day except after dinner of dessert. In that grand tradition, I present this cake, a dressed-up version of the classic “kika” prepared by so many Moroccan women to satisfy their families’ sweet tooth.

Almond Orange Chocolate Cake

Ingredients:

4 eggs
Pinch of salt
1 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup white all-purpose flour
½ cup finely ground almonds
2 tsp baking powder
¼ cup small semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
1 T lemon juice
1 tsp orange essence

Preparation:

Grease and flour a Bundt pan; preheat the oven to 375˚F.

Beat together the eggs, oil and salt.

Combine the flour, almonds, and baking powder in a separate bowl and then gradually mix into the wet mixture.

Pour into prepared pan, sprinkle the chocolate chips on top of the mixture, and bake for half an hour or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Transfer to cooling rack; while it cools, mix the confectioner’s sugar, lemon juice, and orange essence to make a glaze.

Use the toothpick or a fork to poke small holes around the top of the cake (to allow more of the glaze to seep in); once it is cooled, drizzle the glaze over the cake.