Ciambella or ciambellone the perfect cake for breakfast or coffee or tea time. This is one of our favorite recipes to make for a morning meeting or afternoon coffee break. The tangy citrus flavor from the orange and lemon zest used in the ciambella make it a typical Italian cake that is sure to be a big hit!
Take your 10 in | 24-cm bundt pan and butter (or olive oil) and flour the bottom and sides.
Place the eggs (egg whites and yolks), sugar, vanilla and orange and lemon zest into a large bowl with high sides and beat on high with an electric hand mixer until frothy and light.
Now drizzle in the oil into the egg and sugar mixture, still beating with an electric hand mixer on high speed.
Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a separate large bowl and stir with a whisk.
Alternate between adding the dry ingredients and the milk into the egg mixture with the other wet ingredients while beating with the hand mixer on low to medium speed until you have added all the ingredients, which should only take 30 seconds or less and the result should be a smooth, velvety batter with soft peaks.
Pour the ciambella batter into the prepared bundt pan and sprinkle the pearl sugar over the top.
Bake the sponge cake in the preheated oven on the middle rack for about 45 minutes. After 20-25 minutes check to see if the top is browning too much, if it is, lower the heat to 340° F | 170°C and continue baking.
The ciambella cake is done baking when the toothpick inserted comes out dry and the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes before removing from the mold and placing the ciambella onto a wire rack to cool completely before serving. You can add powdered sugar to the top if desired before serving this delicious cake cut into individual slices.