sicilian almond cake

I was given this recipe by the mother of a friend, way back when I was in my 20s. It was handwritten on both sides of an index card by her mother, and labeled Sicilian Almond Cake. She began by grinding blanched almonds as finely as she could, in her blender. Now that you can buy blanched almond flour in any supermarket, it’s super easy to make this cake. The original recipe called for making it in an electric mixer, but that was before the advent of the food processor. I find it easier to get a smooth texture by making the whole thing in the food processor.

The addition of orange blossom water is my own. It’s a wonderful additon.

Almond cakes are found throughout Italy. Some, like this one, use almond paste; others do not. Whether or not this one is truly Sicilian, I have no idea. The one thing I’m sure of, with its soft and tender inside and crunchy toasty top, is that it’s fabulous.

This cake is naturally gluten free, so if gluten’s an issue for you or your guests, this cake is a perfect dessert choice. If gluten is not an issue, it’s still perfect!

Note: Because the recipe calls for 4 ounces of almond paste and it comes in 8 ounce packages, I usually make two at a time and freeze one. Almond paste, once opened, has a short shelf life.

Ingredients:

Have all ingredients at room temperature

4 ounces of almond paste

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/3 cups finely ground blanched almonds (almond flour)

½  cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

½  teaspoon orange zest

½  teaspoon lemon zest

½ teaspoon almond extract

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon kosher salt

½ cup natural sliced almonds

Confectioner’s sugar for dusting

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 325°.

• Prepare the pan: Take an 8 inch cake pan and trace a circle of parchment, then cut out the circle. Butter the bottom and sides of the pan. Then lay the parchment circle in the pan and butter the parchment.

• Break the almond paste up into small pieces and combine it with the butter in a food processor.  Process until smooth.

• Add the sugar and process again. Make sure there are no lumps of almond paste.

• Add the eggs, processing between each addition.

• Then add the zests, the almond extract, and the orange flower water and process briefly again.

• Add the almond flour, the baking powder, and the salt, and pulse just until it’s all combined and homogenous.

• Pour the batter into the cake pan and smooth the top.

• Evenly top the cake with the sliced almonds. Use a gentle hand so that they don’t sink into the batter.

• Slide the pan into the oven and bake the cake for 35 minutes. A tester should come out clean. If not, go a few more minutes but be careful not to over-bake it.

• Remove the cake from the oven and place it, still in the pan, on a cooling rack. Let it cool in the pan for 20 minutes.

• Cover the pan with a flat plate and invert it so that the cake is now on the plate, bottom side up. Peel off the parchment and invert the cake again onto the cooling rack.

• Once it’s completely cool, sprinkle the cake generously with confectioner’s sugar. This is best done by putting the sugar in a strainer and shaking it gently back and forth over the cake.

• Use two spatulas, one coming from each side, to transfer the cake to a serving plate.

Did you make it? Was it fabulous?