A Traybake for the Twilight: Spiced Orange Squares for the Lights Switch-On

There is a particular kind of November cold that seeps into your shoes while you stand in the town centre, waiting for someone on a temporary stage to count down from ten. You want something warm and spiced, something that feels celebratory but can be eaten with gloves on. This spiced orange traybake is built for exactly that moment. It is citrus-scented, gently spiced and sturdy enough to travel in a tub, with no buttercream to smear over your coat.

Why a traybake beats a layer cake outdoors

Layer cakes are lovely at a kitchen table. Outdoors, they ask for plates, forks, level ground and a calm hand. A traybake asks for none of that. It is one layer, with a tight crumb and no filling, so it can be cut into squares, stacked with parchment between the layers and handed round in the dark. It is the cake equivalent of a flask: unfussy, warming and far more practical than it looks.

The bake: a spiced orange traybake

This makes 12 generous squares or 16 smaller ones in a 20 x 30cm traybake tin. The orange keeps it fresh and the mixed spice keeps it festive without turning it into a Christmas pudding.

You will need:

• 225g unsalted butter, softened
• 225g light brown soft sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 250g self-raising flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 2 tsp mixed spice
• Finely grated zest of 2 oranges
• 3 tbsp orange juice
• 100g natural yogurt, optional but good for a soft crumb

For the glaze:

• 100g icing sugar
• 2 tbsp orange juice

Heat the oven to 180°C conventional or 160°C fan. Grease and line your tin with baking parchment, leaving a little overhang at the ends so you can lift the bake out later. Beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, then add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each. Fold in the flour, baking powder and mixed spice. Stir through the orange zest, juice and yogurt until everything is just combined. Spread the mixture level in the tin and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top springs back when pressed lightly and a skewer comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then lift onto a rack to cool completely.

For the glaze, mix the icing sugar with enough orange juice to make a thick but spreadable drizzle. Spread it thinly over the cooled cake and leave it to set before cutting. A thin glaze travels better than a thick one and gives just enough sweetness without turning sticky in a tub.

Packing it for a backpack, buggy or chilly bench

Let the bake cool completely and let the glaze set properly before you cut it. Cut into squares and place them in a shallow clip-lid tub, with a sheet of baking parchment between layers. Do not overfill the tub or the corners will crush. For a backpack, put the tub flat at the top of the bag so it does not slide about. For a buggy, the basket underneath is ideal. This is not a cake to carry loose in a tote bag, however noble the intention.

Decorations that survive the walk home

Keep it simple. A scattering of demerara sugar before baking gives a crunchy top and needs no finishing. Candied orange peel, fine orange zest or a few star sprinkles pressed into the glaze all survive a cold walk home. Avoid fresh cream, soft ganache, cream cheese frosting and delicate piped flowers. Chocolate decorations can bloom in the cold and look tired by the time the lights come on. If you want a festive finish, let the glaze set and press on a few small sugar stars just before you pack the squares.

Make it ahead and keep it calm

This traybake is happiest made the day before. Keep it in an airtight tin for up to three days, or freeze unglazed squares for up to two months. Defrost at room temperature, glaze once they are fully thawed and pack as usual. It is a bake for the school choir run, the high street switch-on and the walk home with cold fingers. Here at Make Me Cake, that is exactly the kind of celebration baking we like best.