Clementine Cake

I had clementines from my weekly market bag and when I saw this recipe in the newsletter, I knew I had to save the clementines for this.

Clementine Cake
Adapted from Nigella Lawson AND smittenkitchen.

4 to 5 clementines (about 375grams/slightly less than 1 pound) I used 5 without weighing
6 eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (225 grams) sugar
2 1/3 cups (250 grams) ground almonds or almond meal* (see tip at bottom)
1 heaping teaspoon baking powder
Optional: Powdered sugar for dusting, or for making a glaze
(If you bought whole almonds, grind them with a food processor, chopper, or a clean coffee grinder while the clementines are boiling or before) 

Put the clementines in a pot with cold water to cover, bring to the boil, and cook for 2 hours.  This will soften and remove the bitterness from the peel.  I found that I needed to add more water towards the end because it started to boil away.  Drain and when cool (I didn't wait, but don't burn yourself), cut each clementine in half and remove the seeds, some won't have seeds - only 1 of mine did. The clementines will be super-mushy. Finely chop the skins, pith, and fruit in a food processor, blender, or by hand.  I used my Cuisinart Hand Stick Blender Chopper- it took 2 batches, each only took about 30 seconds and it's easier to clean than most processors. 
Preheat the oven to 375°F.  Butter and line the bottom of an 8 or 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper. I didn't have parchment paper, so I greased the sides and bottom well.  You could probably also use a regular square or round pan of similar size.  It will be a little harder to get out of the pan and won't look as pretty, but if you don't have a springform pan and don't think you'll use one often, don't buy one just for this.
Beat the eggs. Add the sugar, almonds, and baking powder. Mix well, adding the chopped clementines.
Pour the cake mixture into the prepared pan and bake for about 40 minutes.  You may need to bake a little longer; check with a skewer or thin knife.  I covered mine with foil after 30 minutes so it wouldn't over-brown.
Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the pan on a rack. When the cake is cool, remove from pan (if using springform) and dust with powdered sugar or a glaze if you want it sweeter (but both will soak into cake if you leave it overnight, so you may just want to add it to pieces being served).  If you don't use a springform pan, I'm not sure if it can be taken out of the pan whole without breaking.  It's super-moist, so it may be delicate because it's a little heavier. 

You can make a glaze using milk and powdered sugar or juice and powdered sugar - just stir a small amount of the liquid into the powdered sugar until you get the right consistency.  Add more p. sugar if it gets too runny - you'll figure it out. 

I will be making this again!  I definitely prefer desserts of the chocolate variety, but this is a great change-up and is gluten-free (which means my good friend can eat it!).

*Almond meal is cheap at Trader Joe's - like $2.99 for a lb.  I highly recommend using if you don't already have whole almonds to grind.

The next day it was even better - I added some glaze too!