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1
Preheat the oven to 350u00b0 F (180u00b0 C). Prepare a 22-centimeter (8 1/2-inch) springform cake pan by greasing and lining with baking paper. Place the cup of sugar and grated orange zest in a large bowl and rub the zest into the sugar with your fingers until well-combined (you can also pulse them together in a food processor, but I like to use my hands!). The essential oils in the orange zest infuse the sugar in a wonderful way.
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2
Mix in the butter, then the eggs, one by one, beating well after each until you have a very creamy mixture.
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3
Add a splash of rum, then fold in the flour and baking powder. If it is a little stiff, add a couple tablespoons of milk or fresh orange juice until it is creamy.
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4
Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden on top and springy to the touch. A skewer inserted in the middle should come out clean.
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5
Meanwhile, squeeze the oranges for juice (I used about 1 1/4 cup/300 millimeters but Marcella Hazan's cake calls for 2 cups) and add a couple tablespoons of sugar (depending on the natural sweetness of the fruit, you may want to use less or a bit more).
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6
Remove the cake from the oven and, without moving the baking paper, poke many holes all over the entire top of the cake with a toothpick or a skewer. While the cake is still hot, pour over the sweetened orange juice. Let sit until cooled so that the cake can absorb the liquid fully (you can also do this the night before to serve the next day). Serve in thick slices, perhaps with some confectioners' sugar over the top or some poached slices of citrus fruit to decorate (see headnote). The cake keeps well in the fridge, covered (for a up to a week supposedly, according to Marcella's recipe) but it is undoubtedly at its best on the second day when it has soaked the juice perfectly and evenly but has not yet become soggy, as it can tend to do after a few days.
