Ahh Italian Almond Cake! If you’ve had the pleasure of eating it, then you will know just how aromatic it smells. I once made it for my boss who served it at his dinner party. The next day he told me that before being eaten, the cake was passed around the table for everybody to inhale the intoxicating almond scent. It’s like almond heaven! I didn’t have too much trouble buying almond paste when I was in New York. But here in Auckland, it was a different story. I called every specialty store close to home and nobody had it. I tried looking online but the shipping made it far too expensive. In the end, the easiest (and also cheapest) way was to make it myself with a food processor. I have attached a link with the recipe I used. Keep in mind that almond paste is not marzipan. Marzipan has twice as much sugar as almond paste and is not as delicate. So to get the best bang for your buck, I definitely recommend making your own. Almond paste gets better after sitting in the fridge, so I suggest making it at least a day or two before you want to make the cake. Then let it come to room temperature before using it. Another thing to note is the sliced almonds that go on top of the cake: the first time I made this, most of the almonds sunk inside the cake while baking and very few were left on top. I rectified this by only placing half of the almonds on before putting it in the oven, then sprinkling the rest of them on in the last 10 minutes of baking. Best enjoyed with a hot cuppa. Enjoy!
Recipes
Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf
Can you believe we’re almost at the end of November?! I am glad it will soon be Summer here in New Zealand though. I miss NYC but I really don’t miss the bitter winters they have there! Last weekend I took a trip to a strawberry farm in Clevedon. Even though it’s not Summer yet, the strawberries were sweet and delicious. I got my mum one of the frozen yogurt cones blended with strawberries, which she really enjoyed. I will definitely be making more trips back there before the season is over. Check out my Instagram feed for photos.
S’mores Cake
Today is National S’mores Day, so what better day than to share with you the S’mores cake I made last weekend for a friend’s birthday. This girl loves anything chocolate, so when i asked her what kind of cake she would like this year, she first replied ‘something chocolate’. Then a few minutes later she sent a text saying ‘Actually, can you make a s’mores cake???’ The funny thing is, I had planned to make a s’mores cake back in June for my boyfriend’s birthday, but I didn’t have some of the necessary equipment (you will need a blow torch!) and I was short on time. I ended up making a chocolate cookie dough bundt cake, which didn’t require any decorating time.
Spiked Eggnog Cake with Rum Glaze
A cake that not only has rum in it, but rum in the glaze also? Yes please! Plus eggnog? Sign me up! I’m a huge eggnog fan. Which wasn’t always the case, as you can’t buy it in New Zealand, and I never knew anyone who made their own. Now that I’m living in New York, I’ve really gotten a taste for eggnog during the holidays, and I like to have it as a treat after dinner. Or whenever I want something sweet. I was very surprised when buying the eggnog at my local supermarket, that 5 out of 6 varieties contained high-fructose corn syrup. This is a nasty replacement for sugar, but it’s cheap so that’s why companies use it. I had to pay a bit extra to get the natural eggnog that has real sugar & no artificial ingredients, but at least I feel better about drinking it. The brand I got is called Organic Valley, and I can highly recommend it as one of the best tasting eggnogs I’ve tried. Of course, one of these days I’ll have to make my own.
Triple Layer Carrot Cake
I’ve been making carrot cakes for years, it’s my Mum’s favourite cake and it’s one of mine. I say ‘one’ because nothing can come between me and my chocolate cake. Since I’ve made so many carrot cakes over the years, I’ve experimented with different ingredients and quantities, and in this recipe I believe I’ve nailed…
Southern Caramel Cake
I have been wanting to try my hand at making a caramel cake for quite some time, and after some research I decided to go with this recipe from Grandbaby Cakes. It’s an authentic, true Southern recipe and everything is done from scratch with no shortcuts, including the caramel. So you definitely don’t want to…
Chocolate Cake with Coconut Oil
I’ve been using coconut oil for a while now, I originally bought it as I heard it made a great face cleanser and I’ve recently starting including it in recipes. Chocolate cake is and always will be my favourite cake and I had a thought the other day when I went to make one, that…
Walnut Crunch Cake
The other day I was looking through a recipe book I have ‘The Golden Book of Baking’ and saw this walnut crunch cake. I love the fact that it doesn’t require any decoration at all (the crumble is the topping). It’s baked in a Bundt pan and the walnut crunch takes me back to eating…
Almond Bundt Cake
I’ve been making this cake for several years so it’s high time I post the recipe! It’s a great cake to make when you don’t have much time to spend in the kitchen as it comes together very quickly and it doesn’t necessarily require a glaze or frosting. I usually just sprinkle confectioners sugar over…
Spice Cake with Penuche Frosting
We’re now into the last month of Winter here in New Zealand, and I can’t wait for Spring to get here! But one thing I do love about Winter is filling the kitchen with delicious spice aromas, especially cloves. I can never get enough of the smell of cloves, and I always have to get…