Pearl Swift's Orange Cake

Edward Swift, son of Pearl, was just over this evening to help me re-create his mother's famous orange cake, a much desired treat in Woodville, Texas back in the day. Edward says that its origin may have come from a magazine clipping. Despite where she found it, Pearl clearly made it entirely her own with generous portions of each ingredient ("more is always better," she was known to say) and by never tiring of making it for friends and her community over many, many years.
According to Edward, sometimes she would run off to the county line at the last minute to get that "special kick" she liked to add just as the cake came out of the oven. What that special kick was is still a mystery to Edward despite his trial and errors. We were thinking that gin might be a good possibility.
Some of the secrets to her specialty include using the large-holed grates of a box grater to get big chunks of orange rind with the pith (she liked the bitter taste of the pith). Another crucial step is to pour a hot, liquid-y orange and pith syrup slowly onto the freshly-baked cake while still hot in its mold. Then, the cake is to sit overnight (at least) so it can drink all of the golden syrup and cool down into an elixir of bitter and sweet orange in a nutty butter form.
Pearl was quite particular about letting the cake sit out for a time before cutting into it. Edward says it could sit on the dining table for a whole week leaving admirers to savor the very idea of it. And, once she cut into it, she would only dish it out in thin slices saying that "that way, people will always come back for more."
Edward published the recipe in his memoir of his East Texas family entitled, "My Grandfather's Finger," an excellent thread of yarns about life growing up in the Big Thicket with many a kitchen treasure woven throughtout the book.
Now that he's gone home, I've been left alone, just me and the orange cake, to rest and repose for this one night. Together alone. How will I ever know when it's ready...?

Pearl Swift's Orange Cake
2 cups white sugar
1 cup butter, softened
2 heaping tablespoons of orange rind (grated on a box grater with some pith)
4 eggs, slightly beaten
1 1/3 buttermilk* (to which 1 teaspoon of baking soda will be added just before using)
4 cups of sifted white flour
1 cup of chopped nuts (smaller than peas) combined with 2 tablespoons of flour
(Pearl says that if the nuts are lightly floured, they don't drop to the bottom.)
She used hickery nuts from nearby trees. Walnuts or almonds will suffice.

Orange glaze
2 cups white sugar
1 generous cup of freshly squeezed orange juice
1 teaspoon of lime juice
2 heaping tablespoons to a handful, if you feel like it, of grated orange rind

Preheat oven to 350F and grease and lightly flour a bundt mold. Set aside. Cream the butter with the sugar. Mix in the orange rind and then the eggs until all is combined. Alternate adding the buttermilk and then the sifted flour in thirds. Gently fold in the nuts. Do not overmix. Pour the cake in the mold and let it bake for 1 hour or until it is golden in color, slightly cracked on the surface and a slim knife inserted comes out clean.

While the cake is in the oven, prepare the syrup. Combine the orange juice, sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan and cook over medium heat. Keep an eye on it and stir frequently. After about ten minutes, the syrup will begin to bubble and foam. When it darkens slightly in color and coats the back of a spoon (still a bit runny, however) add the orange rind and turn off the heat and let it sit until the cake is out of the oven. Just before removing the cake from the oven, reheat the syrup so that it is hot for pouring.

When the cake is out of the oven, gradually pour the hot syrup letting the cake absorb it little by little. When all the syrup is poured, the cake should pull away from the sides and the orange rind pieces will sit and glaze over the top. Let the cake sit in its mold overnight and then when unmolding do not turn over and serve in a traditional bundt form but rather, unmold and let the crusty orange rind glaze be presented as the top of the cake.

Serve when you think it's ready and, if you like, add a little kick when adding the syrup to the cake.

* if buttermilk is not available, add 1 1/2 tablespoons of lemon juice to whole milk and let it sit for 5 minutes.