Almond Cakes With Syrup Recipes

ALMOND SYRUP CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 160°C (325°F). Line a 24cm round springform tin with non-stick baking paper. Place the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract in the bowl of an electric mixer and whisk for 12-15 minutes or until pale and tripled in volume. Add the flour, almond meal, butter, lemon rind and liqueur and gently fold to combine. Pour the mixture into the tin and spread evenly. Sprinkle with the flaked almonds and bake for 30-35 minutes or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Allow to cool completely in the tin.
• While the cake is cooling, make the amaretto syrup. Place the water, sugar, vanilla bean and seeds and liqueur in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir to combine. Bring to the boil and cook for 10-12 minutes or until reduced. Allow the syrup to cool slightly and discard the vanilla pod.
• Remove the cake from the tin and place on a cake stand or plate. Drizzle with the amaretto syrup to serve.

TOASTED-ALMOND CAKE WITH STRAWBERRIES IN ROSé-WATER SYRUP

Steps:

• Make cake:
• Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour cake pan, knocking out excess flour.
• With blender motor at high speed, add half of toasted almonds through top hole and finely grind (be careful not to grind to a paste). Transfer to a bowl and grind remaining almonds in same manner, transferring to bowl. Add flour, baking powder, and salt to ground almonds and whisk until combined well.
• Beat eggs in a large bowl with an electric mixer at high speed until foamy, about 15 seconds, then add superfine sugar a little at a time, beating. Continue beating until mixture is thick, pale, and forms a ribbon when beater is lifted, 7 to 8 minutes in a stand mixer or 10 to 14 minutes with a handheld. Add butter in a slow stream, beating, then add milk and almond extract and beat until just combined. Reduce speed to low, then add flour mixture, mixing until just combined.
• Spread batter in pan, smoothing top, then sprinkle evenly with sliced almonds. Bake until top is golden, cake begins to pull away from side of pan, and a wooden pick inserted in center of cake comes out clean, 30 to 40 minutes. Cool cake in pan on a rack 30 minutes, then run a knife around edge to loosen and invert onto rack. Turn cake right side up on rack and cool completely, about 30 minutes more.
• Make strawberries in syrup:
• Bring water, sugar, and lemon juice to a boil in a 2- to 3-quart saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then boil, uncovered, until reduced to about 2 cups, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer syrup to a bowl and cool completely. Stir in strawberries and rose water and macerate at room temperature 30 minutes.
• Whip cream and assemble dessert:
• Beat cream in a large bowl with cleaned beaters until it holds soft peaks.
• Cut cake into 4 squares and reserve 2 squares for another use. Carefully cut each of remaining 2 squares diagonally into quarters for a total of 8 triangles, then halve each triangle horizontally. Sandwich triangle halves with strawberries, syrup, and whipped cream.

ORANGE AND ALMOND CAKE WITH ORANGE SYRUP

Steps:

• Grease and lightly flour a 23cm springform cake tin.
• Place the whole oranges in a medium saucepan, cover with water and boil for 2 hours, topping up with more water as it evaporates.
• Remove the oranges.
• Preheat the oven to 180C.
• Cut the oranges into quarters and place in a food processor.
• Blend until smooth, then cool thoroughly.
• Place the egg yolks, orange liqueur and caster sugar in a large bowl and beat until smooth, then stir in the orange puree and mix well.
• Whisk the egg whites in a dry bowl until firm peaks form.
• Add the almonds and baking powder to the orange mixture, stir together well, then carefully fold in the eggwhites.
• Gently pour into the cake tin and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 1 hour.
• Cool the cake in the tin, then transfer to a serving plate.
• To make the syrup: place the orange juice, sugar and sauterne in a saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves.
• Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until reduced by half.
• Skim off any scum that forms on the surface.
• The syrup will thicken as it cools.
• To serve, cut the cake into wedges, top with the candied orange, or rind and drizzle the syrup over.
• Serve with cream.

ORANGE & ALMOND CAKE WITH GLACE ORANGES & SYRUP

Steps:

• To prepare the oranges for the cake: Place the oranges into a large saucepan (I used a stockpot, but something the size of a Dutch Oven would do), cover oranges with hot water from the tap, place on a medium heat, and bring water up to boiling point.
• I had a problem with the oranges floating, so I placed a heatproof glass pie plate on top to keep them submerged.
• Reduce heat and simmer oranges for 40-50 minutes or until the skin is very tender - your fingernail should easily penetrate the skin.
• Check water from time to time and top up if necessary.
• Remove oranges from pan and allow to cool, then cut oranges into quarters, remove any seeds, and leave on a plate, uncovered, at room temperature, to dry a little for 1-2 hours.
• Now, unless you're going to make the cake immediately, place the orange quarters into a sealed container and store in the refrigerator until needed.
• To make the syrup: The syrup will keep so it can be made well ahead.
• Just place the orange juice, sugar and sauternes in a saucepan over a medium heat and stir until the sugar dissolves.
• Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes until the liquid is reduced by half.
• From time to time, and especially at the end, scrape off any scum that forms on the top.
• Pour into a heat proof jug or jar, cool, cover and refrigerate until needed.
• Note: the syrup is supposed to thicken as it cools, but don't expect a thick syrup.
• To make the glace oranges: Remove any seeds from the orange slices and arrange them (with the rind still on) in a large, shallow, heatproof container.
• Cover oranges with boiling water and allow to stand at room temperature overnight.
• The next day, drain the oranges.
• In a large frying pan, place the sugar, water and vanilla bean and stir over a low heat until the sugar dissolves.
• Now, add the orange slices in a single layer, and simmer, uncovered over a low heat for an hour.
• Remove oranges and arrange in one layer on a plate and cover with the syrup. Cover and keep in the refrigerator until you want to decorate the cake - I did this just prior to serving it.
• If you find, as I did, the syrup went toffee-ish and the oranges stuck to the plate after keeping, just whack it, uncovered, into the microwave for a minute or so to melt the syrup.
• To make the cake: Spray a 22cm (9") springform tin with a double layer of silicone (baking) paper.
• Preheat oven to 170°C.
• Now, put the boiled orange quarters (peel and all) into a food processor and pulse until quite smooth - you won't get it completely smooth, but do your best.
• Add the eggs and pulse again, trying to get the smoothest mixture possible.
• Add the sugar, the flour (if using), the baking powder and as much of the almond meal as you can without overloading your food processor and pulse until you have a smooth batter.
• If necessary, pour batter into a big mixing bowl and stir in the rest of the almond meal.
• Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake at 170C for 45-50 minutes or until a skewer, inserted in the centre, comes out clean.
• Allow to cool a little, then release the springform pan, and invert the cake onto a dinner plate and carefully remove the baking paper from the base and sides.
• Invert back onto another plate, allow to cool, then cover and refrigerate until needed.
• To decorate cake: Use your own judgement, but this is what I did.
• Pour a couple of tablespoons of the sauce over the top of the cake and smooth with the back of a spoon.
• Cut some of the glace orange slices into halves and arrange around the outside of the cake.
• Leave three or four slices whole, cut halfway through and then 'twist' to sit upright in a circle in the centre of the cake.
• Using a pastry brush, use the syrup from the glace oranges to glaze the sides of the cake - microwave the syrup briefly to bring it back to liquid consistency if necessary.
• Tuck some pretty flowers (I used daisies) amongst the oranges on top of the cake.
• To serve: Serve small slices (it's rich) with the syrup (cold or at room temperature) and a dollop of thick cream.
• Swear never to make this cake again!