Italian Almond Cake
This Italian almond cake is fluffy, nutty, and made with 7 ingredients! The perfect treat for breakfast or dessert with coffee or tea.
Serving: 12
Calories: 186kcal
Ingredients
- 4 eggs, room temperature
- ⅛ teaspoon sea salt
- 150 g sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh orange zest
- 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
- 60 g all-purpose flour or cake flour, approx ½ cup
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch, only if using all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder, approx 15 g
- 200 g almond flour , or almond meal
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/360°F and adjust a baking rack onto the middle shelf. Grease and line with parchment paper a 8-inch or 9-inch cake pan and set it aside.
- In a large bowl, place the egg whites. Using a hand mixer, whisk the whites on medium speed until they become foamy, then increase the speed to high. Continue whisking until the whites turn glossy and stiff peaks form, then set the bowl aside.
- In another large bowl whisk the egg yolks and sugar with an hand mixer until light, pale, and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Then gently whisk in the orange zest and juice.
- Place a sieve/ strainer over the bowl. Add flour and baking powder, and sift into the cake batter, followed by the almond flour. Whisk until just combined (do not overmix).
- Gently fold the beaten egg whites into the cake batter in 3 batches, start at the bottom of the bowl, scoop up the batter, and fold it over the egg whites, until completely incorporated.
- Bake in the oven for approximately 40 minutes. During the last 10 minutes of baking time, cover the top of the cake with foil to prevent it from browning too much. To check if the cake is ready, insert a toothpick in the center, if it comes out clean, the cake is ready.
- Remove the cake from the oven, allow to cool, then gently remove the cake from the pan.
- Once ready, dust the Italian almond cake with powdered sugar and serve at room temperature. It's lovely topped with orange mascarpone frosting, vanilla ice cream, freshly whipped cream, or Greek yogurt.
Notes
Baking tips:
- Measure your ingredients: I always recommend using a baking scale to weigh your ingredients. US cups measurements are provided but please refer to grams measurements for best results.
- How to substitute cake flour: If you don't have cake flour at hand, use the same amount of all purpose flour, plus 1 tablespoon of cornstarch, then sift before adding into the batter.
- Use eggs at room temperature: Egg whites whip better at room temperature because the proteins are more relaxed, which helps trap air more easily. This makes them fluffier and helps them form more stable peaks when beaten.
- Gently mix the batter: Fold the egg whites into the cake batter into batches, start at the bottom of the bowl, scoop up the batter, and fold it over the egg whites.
- Don’t over-bake: The cake is ready when a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, and the top is no longer sticky or wet.
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Nutrition
Calories: 186kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 55mg | Sodium: 151mg | Potassium: 30mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 84IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 104mg | Iron: 1mg
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.