Blood oranges are in season at the moment so make the most of them whilst they are around!  They are so vibrant and will brighten up any dish. This cake is a beautifully light sponge that is layered up with cream, blood orange curd and lightly caramelised slices.

It is best to make the cake the day before you are going to serve it, as it is too fragile to cut up straight after baking.

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 180C/160C fan. Bring a large pan, half filled with water, on to boil.
2. Prepare your 20cm round baking tin by lightly greasing it with oil, and lining the bottom with a circle of greaseproof paper. Lightly oil the top of the greaseproof. Then sprinkle a few tablespoons of caster sugar in the bottom of the tin and move the tin around so the caster sugar covers the bottom and all the way up the sides of the tin.
3. Melt your butter in a small pan and set aside to cool.
4. In a heatproof bowl that snugly fits into your large saucepan of boiling water, mix together the eggs and caster sugar. Then take the pan of water off the heat and place the bowl of eggs and sugar over it, ensuring the bottom of the bowl is not touching the water.
5. Using an electric hand held whisk, on a low speed whisk the eggs and sugar until very pale and fluffy. When you lift up the whisk it should leave a ribbon for 5-6 seconds.
6. Take the bowl off the pan and continue whisking the mixture for 1-2 minutes until cool.
7. Sieve your flour over the mixture and gently fold in using a large metal spoon.
8. When combined and no large pockets of flour are left, pour over your melted butter and continue to fold until completely combined.
9. From a low height gently pour the mixture into the prepared tin.
10. Transfer to the oven and bake for 30-35 minutes.
11. When the cake is done it should be golden brown, coming away from the sides of the tin and when lightly pressed it will bounce back.
12. Allow the cake to completely cool in the tin before gently turning it out.
13. Wrap up in cling film until ready the cut and fill.
14. To make the curd, put the juice in a saucepan with the sugar and butter and gently heat until the butter is melted.
15. Beat the eggs and add to the pan whilst stirring. Slowly bring up to a simmer, constantly stirring with a wooden spoon. Once it has simmered for a few minutes and has thickened up strain through a sieve, add in the zest and leave to cool. It will thicken further once cooled.
16. Slice up the blood oranges into circles leaving the skin on. Lay out flat onto a baking tray and sprinkle with 1 tbsp of the icing sugar. Place under a medium grill for 10-12 minutes, keeping an eye on them. They should bubble and crisp up but don’t allow them to burn.
17. Lightly whip the double cream with the rest of the icing sugar and set aside.
18. Cut the cake horizontally into 3 equal pieces. This can easily be done by scoring all the way round the outside of the cake with a seated knife. Then using a long piece of cotton thread, wrap it around the cake following the score lines. As you gently pull the cotton, it should neatly cut through the cake.
19. Then layer up the cake with whipped cream and the curd saving a little of the curd for the top.
20. Spread the remaining curd on to top of the cake and arrange the grilled slices of blood orange.