“Chocolate–Orange” Cake for a Special Occasion
The largest cake in the catalog and one of the most recognizable combinations at the pastry shop: a rich chocolate sponge cake, dark chocolate ganache, and orange curd inside.
How does it taste?
The sponge cake is truly chocolatey—moist, dense, with a deep cocoa flavor. The ganache adds another layer of chocolate, while the orange curd inside provides a citrusy tang that keeps the cake from feeling heavy. The cream cheese in the filling is slightly salty, and it’s what keeps the flavors balanced.
What occasions is it suitable for?
It’s a popular choice for events with lots of guests: birthdays, anniversaries, office parties, and New Year’s and Christmas celebrations. The combination of chocolate and orange is strongly associated with winter holidays, so this is one of our most frequent orders during the winter.
Weight and Servings
A whole cake weighs 2.3 kg and yields 10 of very large slices, each weighing approximately 270 g. It’s the heaviest cake in our catalog: enough to serve twelve or more guests.
How to order in Kharkiv
The price for a whole cake is 1500 UAH, and a slice is 150 UAH. The cake is prepared for your specified date; orders must be placed at least two days in advance. Delivery is available throughout Kharkiv, or you can pick it up from Edison coffee shops.
The History of the Chocolate-Orange Combination
This pairing predates most classic cakes: chocolate and citrus were combined back when chocolate was a drink, not a bar.
Spain and Candied Orange Peel
The Spanish brought cocoa to Europe in the 16th century, and they were the first to add spices and citrus zest to chocolate—to soften its bitterness. At the same time, there was a long-standing tradition in the Mediterranean of candied orange peel: it was made in monasteries in Sicily and Valencia, and later began to be dipped in chocolate. Such candied peel remains a classic of Italian and Spanish confectionery to this day.
York, 1932
England made this flavor a mass-market hit. In 1932, Terry’s factory in York released a chocolate ball divided into segments, just like a real orange—you had to tap it on the table to make it break apart. The product became the go-to Christmas gift and, for decades, cemented the association that “chocolate with orange means winter and the holidays.”
Why They Go So Well Together
The explanation is chemical: the essential oil in orange peel contains limonene, which has a bright, fresh aroma, while cocoa provides bitterness and richness. The fat traps the citrus’s aromatic compounds and releases them more slowly, which is why the orange scent in chocolate lasts longer than it does on its own. Confectioners discovered this effect empirically several centuries before it was explained.