Moist Almond Cake Food

ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter sides and bottoms of 2 8-inch cake or springform pans; line sides and bottoms with parchment paper. Butter paper. Place pans in freezer.
• Sift flour and salt into a small bowl. Set aside. In a mixer fitted with a paddle, beat butter and granulated sugar at high speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add almond paste, a little at a time at medium speed, and beat 8 minutes. Beat in egg yolks, one at a time, and almond extract. Mix sour cream and baking soda and add to butter mixture. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add flour mixture, just until blended.
• Divide batter between prepared pans and spread evenly. Bake about 40 minutes to an hour, until tops are golden and spring back when lightly pressed and cakes shrink from sides of the pans. Cool in pans on wire rack. Remove sides of pans and remove paper. When ready to serve, sift confectioners' sugar on top and slice like pie.

ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• Finely grind the almonds in a food processor.
• With an electric mixer, beat the egg yolks with the sugar to a smooth pale cream. Beat in the zests and almond extract. Add the ground almonds and mix very well.
• With clean beaters, beat the egg whites in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Fold them into the egg and almond mixture (the mixture is thick, so that you will need to turn it over quite a bit into the egg whites).
• Grease an 11-inch springform pan, preferably nonstick, with butter and dust it with flour. Pour in the cake batter, and bake into a preheated 350°F for 40 minutes, or until it feels firm to the touch. Let cool before turning out.
• Just before serving, dust the top of the cake with confectioners' sugar. Or, if you like, cut a St. James cross out of paper. Place it in the middle of the cake, and dust the cake with confectioners' sugar, then remove the paper.

MOIST ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and position the rack to the center of the oven. Line the bottom of a 9-inch cake pan with a round of parchment paper, or butter and dust it lightly with flour, tapping out any excess.
• With an electric mixer, beat together the sugar and almond paste until the paste is finely broken up (the sugar crystals help break the paste into pieces--so don't add the butter yet!).
• Now add the butter and beat for a few minutes until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl stir together the eggs with a fork then dribble it into the batter as you beat. Add the vanilla.
• Mix together the flour, baking powder and salt with a whisk. Stir the dry ingredients into the batter until just incorporated.
• Transfer the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The baking time may take a bit longer due to the variation in different brands of almond paste.
• Cool the cake on a rack before serving.

ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• 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.

ANGEL FOOD CAKE I

Steps:

• Beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks, and then add cream of tartar, vanilla extract, and almond extract.
• Sift together flour, sugar, and salt. Repeat five times.
• Gently combine the egg whites with the dry ingredients, and then pour into an ungreased 10 inch tube pan.
• Place cake pan in a cold oven. Turn the oven on; set it to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Cook for about one hour, or until cake is golden brown.
• Invert cake, and allow it to cool in the pan. When thoroughly cooled, remove from pan.

M. CUNNINGHAM'S ALMOND BUTTER CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
• Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring regularly.
• Pour the melted butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar into a large bowl and stir until smooth.
• Crack the eggs right into the same bowl and mix until the batter is creamy and all one color.
• Add the salt, almond extract, vanilla extract, and flour and stir briskly until the batter is smooth.
• Grease the bottom and sides of a 9-inch round cake pan with butter or nonstick cooking spray.
• Using a rubber spatula, scrape the batter from the bowl into the greased cake pan.
• Spread it evenly in the pan.
• Sprinkle the tablespoon of sugar, then the sliced almonds, over the top of the batter.
• Put the pan on the middle rack of the oven and set the timer for 35 minutes.
• When it rings, check to see if the cake is done.
• It should be light brown on top, and when you insert a toothpick in the center, it should have a few sticky crumbs adhering to it.
• If the cake is not browned enough and the toothpick comes out too wet, put the cake back in the oven and check it again in another 10 minutes.
• When the cake is done, remove it from the oven and let it cool on a heatproof counter for at least 30 minutes.
• Cut the cake into small wedges and serve with fresh fruit.
• This cake will stay fresh for about a week and will freeze indefinitely.
• Wrap it tightly in foil, or in a plastic bag you can seal with a zip or tie.
• Storing nuts: Whenever you have leftover nuts, freeze them in a plastic bag closed tightly.
• They will keep indefinitely in the freezer.