Almond Cake

There's nothing like an almond cake in the Spring.  Great with berries!


Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

1/2 cup fine yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup almond paste, cut into half-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting
4 egg yolks
2 eggs
1/4 cup sour cream

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter and flour an 8-inch round cake pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, cake flour and baking powder. Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and almond paste on high speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add vanilla extract and slowly pour in confectioners' sugar. Mix until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Raise speed to high and add the egg yolks and whole eggs, one at a time. Reduce speed to medium and add the sour cream and dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth the surface with a spatula. Bake in the lower third of the oven for 35 minutes, or until the cake is golden and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Transfer pan to a wire rack and let cool. Remove from pan and dust with confectioners' sugar.

Recipe Giada de Laurentis

Almond Roca Cookies

This recipe was handpicked by Emeril in one of his contests. It comes from  Key Ingredient


Ingredients

2 1/2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup dark brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 cup butter, room temp

2 eggs, room temp

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 package toffee bits

1 cup coarsely ground almonds

4 ounces milk chocolate

1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil


Directions

Preheat oven to 300. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, blend sugars together on medium speed, add butter to form a grainy paste. Add eggs and vanilla and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. At low speed, slowly add the flour mixture and the toffee bits. Mix just until blended. No overmixing, OK?

Place ground nuts in a small bowl. Using hands roll balls of dough into 1 to 1 1/2 inch balls, then roll in the ground nuts. PLace in oven for about 22 minutes. Transfer cookies to a cooling rack.

Melt the chocolate along with the vegetable oil. Drizzle this over the cooled cookies. Place in fridge until chocolate is firmly shed.

Chocolate Amaretti Cake

Okay, so halfway through the summer, just about now, after we have had our fill of strawberries, melons, peaches and the rest of the summer bounty, we begin to get a yen for something chocolaty.  Maybe chocolate with raspberries, my favorite combination.  This cake seems to fit the bill.  Not too fancy, but intriguing enough, and just one pan to clean besides the food processor...my kind of cake!

If you want to get complicated, serve it with plain whipped cream and raspberries.  If you keep it simple, it is a wonderful dessert to take on a picnic, the beach or the boat this summer.

Chocolate Amaretti Cake
Printable Recipe


Ingredients

Butter-flavored nonstick cooking spray

3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate or semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup slivered almonds

1 cup baby amaretti cookies (about 2 ounces)

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

2 teaspoons grated orange peel

4 large eggs

Unsweetened cocoa powder, for sifting

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spray a 9-inch springform pan the nonstick spray. Refrigerate. Microwave the chocolate until melted and smooth, stirring every 20 seconds, for about 1 minute.

Combine the almonds and cookies in processor. Pulse until the almonds and cookies are finely ground. Transfer the nut mixture to a medium bowl. Add the butter and sugar to the processor and blend until creamy and smooth. Add the grated orange peel and pulse briefly, until incorporated. Add the eggs 1 at a time. Blend until the eggs are incorporated. Clean the sides of the mixing bowl and blend again. Add the nut mixture and melted chocolate. Pulse until blended. Clean the sides of the bowl. Blend again.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the center puffs and a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Cool the cake in the pan for 15 minutes.

Transfer the cake to a platter. Sift the cocoa powder over and serve.



Recipe courtesy Giada de Laurentis

Change of Plans!...Almond Cake

I love almonds and one layer light cakes to accompany fruit or to have alone with a cup of tea in the summer so when I saw this almond cake, I knew I just had to try it.  I was so excited when I read where it came from that I nixed the pound cake I was supposed to make for my guests this weekend and substituted  this.  The cake keeps for four days tightly wrapped so it will be great to bake ahead and have around for when they start arriving Friday night!

This cake is best made in the food processor. If using a stand mixture, use the paddle attachment and let the mixer run until the almond paste is finely broken up.

The butter was reduced (by David Leibowitz) from the original recipe, which had two more ounces for a total of 10 ounces,  since some felt the original cake was a bit heavy and too-buttery. This is how I also made it but if you do wish to go that route, I'd be interested in knowing what you think.


You will need one 9-inch or 10-inch (23-25 cm) cake

Ingredients

1 1/3 cups  sugar

8 ounces almond paste

3/4, plus 1/4 cup  flour

1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cubed

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon almond extract

6 large eggs, at room temperature


Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325ºF. Grease a 9- or 10-inch (23-25 cm) cake or spring form pan with butter, dust it with flour and tap out any excess. Line the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment paper.

2. In the bowl of a food processor, grind the sugar, almond paste, and 1/4 cup of flour until the almond paste is finely ground and the mixture resembles sand.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining 3/4 cup of flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. Once the almond paste is completely broken up, add the cubes of butter and the vanilla and almond extracts, then process until the batter is very smooth and fluffy.

5. Add the eggs one at a time, processing a bit before the next addition. (You may wish to open the machine and scrape the sides down to make sure the eggs are getting fully incorporated.)

After you add all the eggs, the mixture may look curdled. Don't worry; it'll come back together after the next step.

6. Add half the flour mixture and pulse the machine a few times, then add the rest, pulsing the machine until the drying ingredients are just incorporated, but do not overmix. (You can also transfer the batter to a bowl and mix the dry ingredients in, which ensures the dry ingredients get incorporated evenly and you don't overbeat it.)

7. Scrape the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake the cake for 65 minutes, or until the top is deep brown and feels set when you press in the center.

8. Remove the cake from the oven and run a sharp or serrated knife around the perimeter, loosing the cake from the sides of the pan. Let the cake cool completely in the pan.

Once cool, tap the cake out of the pan, remove the parchment paper, and set on a cake plate until ready to serve. (Tip: Warm the bottom of the cake pan directly on the stovetop for just a few seconds, which will help the cake release.)


Storage: This cake will keep for four days at room temperature, well-wrapped. It can also be frozen for up to two months.


Adapted from Chez Panisse Desserts by Lindsey Remolif Shere   David Leibowitz

Printable Recipe

Homemade Almond Paste

If you are having trouble finding almond paste where you live, here's an easy recipe.  You can halve if you need less.


Ingredients

3 cups blanched almonds

3 cups confectioners (powdered) sugar

2 large egg whites, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon pure almond extract

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt


Directions

Pour almonds into the food processor and process until finely ground.

Add the confectioner's sugar, egg whites, vanilla extract, almond extract, and salt and continue to blend until smooth and well combined. Use paste immediately, or place in a an air-tight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.


Photo: A Taste of Home