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Almond Cake on notjustspice.com

Almond Cake

If I had to choose a breakfast cake, it would be almond cake. If I had to choose a cake to eat an entire day, it would be almond cake again. My reasons are threefold: it is nutty and distinctly aromatic, it is moist and buttery, and it fills you up and keeps you going for hours.
Cook Time 45 minutes

Ingredients

  • 225 g (8 oz) butter or margarine
  • 225 g (8 oz) caster sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond essence
  • 125 g (4 oz) self-raising flour
  • 175 g (6 oz) ground almonds
  • 50 g (2 oz) whole almonds, blanched
  • 25 g (1 oz) plain dark chocolate optional

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 150ºC (300ºF). Lightly oil and line the base of a 20.5 cm (8-inch) standard round cake tin with parchment paper.
  2. Cream together the butter or margarine and sugar with a wooden spoon until light and fluffy.
  3. Whisk the eggs and essences together, and add to the fluffy mix a little at a time, mixing well after each addition.
  4. Sift the flour, and add to the egg mixture. While continuously mixing it in, add in the ground almonds too until mixed well.
  5. Transfer the mixture into the prepared cake pan. Roughly chop the almonds and scatter them over the cake batter before sending it off into the oven.

  6. Bake for 45 minutes or until you see that it is golden and a skewer or butter knife inserted in the centre comes out clean. Remove from oven and cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack.

  7. Remove from tin and let it cool further on a wire rack.

  8. Once the cake is cooled, melt the chocolate in a small bowl placed over hot water simmering away in a saucepan. Take it off the heat once it is smooth. Drizzle it over the cake and serve once the chocolate has set.

Notes

Since this cake pairs well with fruits and jams, you could induce that into the cake and then pair it with fruit. Add a tablespoon or two of orange water, along with the zest of an orange for a fragrant citrus flavour. Remember to omit the vanilla essence. This almond cake tastes better when eaten the next day. You may want to warm your slice of cake before eating it — the rich nutty aroma is just so inviting!

Storage: When stored in an air-tight container, this cake lasts for about 3-4 days.

Equipment: One 20.5 cm x 5 cm (8-inch x 2-inch) round cake pan. If you're using a dark cake pan, take the cake out 10 minutes earlier and check to see if it is baked through by inserting a skewer. The cake must start to shrink after you take it out of the oven.