Lemon Almond Cake
This delightful cake is the perfect Passover seder dessert–naturally Passover-friendly with no ingredient substitutions needed. It’s dairy-free, can be made in the morning and left at room temperature, and is delicious on its own or paired with fresh berries or fruit sorbet. Its texture is uniquely soft and almost creamy.
As a flourless cake, it also serves as an excellent gluten-free option year-round. The recipe comes from Leah Koenig’s outstanding book, Portico: Cooking and Feasting in Rome’s Jewish Kitchen, which offers a fascinating glimpse into a lesser-known culinary tradition.
Lemon Almond Cake
| Yield: 1 9″ cake | # of Servings: 8 -10 | Method: Modified creaming | Difficulty: Easy |
Ingredients
6 egg yolks
½ cup (3.5 oz / 99 g) granulated sugar
2 cups (7.05 oz / 200 g) almond flour
1 tsp lemon zest
3 tbl fresh lemon juice
½ tsp almond extract
6 egg whites
¼ tsp salt
¼ cup (1.75 oz / 50 g) granulated sugar
1 ¼ cup (approx.) sliced, blanched almonds.
Confectioners’ sugar, as needed
Amond flour, as needed for the inside of the springform pan
Fresh berries, or fruit sorbet as optional accompaniments
Special tools and equipment needed:
- One 9″ springform pan
- 9″ Parchment paper circle
- Hand held or free-standing mixer with paddle attachment.
Pre-recipe preparations:
- Grease the bottom of the springform pan with butter (or margarine, for 100% non-dairy). Place the parchment round on the bottom and grease the paper and the sides of the springform. Dust entire inside of pan with almond flour.
- Preheat oven to 350°F
Directions
- Place egg yolks and sugar in machine bowl, or a large mixing bowl and handheld. Beat on KA speed 5 until light colored and thick, approximately 3 to 4 minutes
- Add almond flour and beat until thoroughly incorporated. Scraped down bowl. Mixture will thick at this point.
- Add lemon zest, lemon juice, and almond extract and beat on low speed until thoroughly combined. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl. If this the only machine bowl, transfer mixture to large mixing bowl.
- In clean bowl, using the wire whip beat the egg whites with salt to medium stiff peaks. Slowly add the sugar and beat just until stiff peaks. Don’t overwhip the egg whites.
- Lighten the cake batter by stirring in ¼ of the egg whites. Fold in remainder of the whites, just until no egg white is visible.
- Place the batter in the prepared springform pan. Gently smooth the top with an offset spatula.
- Scatter the sliced almonds over the batter.
- Bake until cake is firm to the touch, light golden brown and cake tester comes out clean, between 23 and 27 minutes. Don’t over bake
- Let cool for 20 minutes in the pan. Release the outer ring and allow to thoroughly cool. Note – run a paring knife around the outside of the cake if necessary.
- Invert the cake onto a cooling rack, peel off the parchment, and invert back onto a cake plate.
- Dust with confectioners’ sugar.
- Store at room temperature for up to three days. May be wrapped well and frozen.
