As easy to make as it is delicious to eat, this incredibly moist, buttery Almond Cake, with a tender and fluffy crumb, is almost impossible to cock up!
Serves 8
Collect together your equipment (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.
Preheat oven to fan oven 150°C /170°C/325°F/Gas 3
Chop the marzipan and butter into cubes and put into a food processor with the sugar. Blitz until it is thoroughly mixed, the marzipan broken down and the mixture is thick and creamy. This may take a few minutes.
With the engine running, add the almond and vanilla extracts and the eggs, one at a time.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl of the processor and add the flour, baking powder and salt. Blitz until mixed in and the cake batter is smooth.
Pour into a lined cake tin and bake in the centre of a pre-heated oven for 45 – 50 minutes. The cake is cooked when it is golden and:
- the centre feels springy when lightly touched with your finger and no imprint remains,
- a toothpick inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
Leave in the tin for 5 minutes and then transfer to a cooling rack.
To serve: sieve over a thick layer of icing sugar and serve:
- in slices with a cup of tea, or
- for dessert with fresh or cooked fruit and fresh cream, crème fraîche or ice cream, or
- for breakfast with fresh or cooked fruit and natural yoghurt.
Equipment:
This is a Nigella Lawson recipe:
I have been making this wonderful recipe from the inestimable Nigella Lawson for well over 20 years. It is such a simple cake to make that Nigella calls it ‘Easy Almond Cake’. I prefer to call it simply ‘Almond Cake.’ Using the word ‘easy’ somehow detracts from how utterly splendid this cake actually is.
How many does this cake serve?
The quantity in the recipe above is sufficient for a deep 18cm/7inch round cake and more than enough for 6 - 8 generous slices. Nigella's recipe uses double the quantities and she cooks hers in a 25cm/10inch springform tube pan or patterned ring mould, buttered and floured.)
Nigella's Tips: