One of my favorite things to do on the weekend is drink a cup of tea and play backgammon. The tea is scorching hot and I love the anticipation of waiting for it to cool down, just a little, before I take a bite of my cake... or muffin... or pastry. I can't start eating my treat until the tea is sippable. You must eat a little cakey thing with tea. It's required. Making this perfect almond tea cake makes me happy. I hope it makes you happy too.
Light and Sweet: almond tea cake
Almond tea cake is very no muss, no fuss. It's easy to make and you probably already have most ingredients on hand. This is the best cake when you just want a little bite of... something light and sweet.
And I know: using the word perfect is frowned upon. However, I don't even mean this cake is perfect and you'll never find another like it. I'm sure you can and will. I mean that when I make it with a cup of mint tea, it's always brought me the greatest pleasure. That, plus a game of backgammon with a dear friend and I'm all set. Nothing makes me happier and more satisfied.
If you're someone with a sweet tooth like me, you should also check out my lemon ricotta cake w/lemon icing (another tea time favorite). 😉 Claudia Fleming's Guinness Stout Ginger Cake is too die for and of course if you simply must have chocolate I've got an incredible chocolate cream pie with graham cracker crust that should do the trick.
AlmoND TEA cake ADD-ONS ARE Fun
If you've got an orange or lemon hanging around, get out your microplane and add a little zest to this cake batter. I added orange zest to this one. It doesn't overwhelm, but adds a special little subtle something to the flavor.
My friend who shared the recipe with me also suggested adding cherries to this cake. I haven't had a chance to try that yet, but I really want to! However, I do tend to add berries on the side when I make a smaller, thin cake like this. And since I often have fresh mint on hand I will use that as well.
Easy Almond Tea Cake add-ons recaP:
- Top with sifted powdered sugar
- Add orange or lemon zest to the batter (just a teaspoon)
- Add a cup of pitted cherries to the batter (fresh or frozen)
- Serve with fresh berries on the side
- Add some mint leaves to garnish the serving plate
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Making tea with your almond cake
As you can see in the photo, I used some fancy mint tea bags by Harney & Sons - not sponsored - just love them. When I want it done faster, I'll use the tea bags. They're small and mesh and kind of silky. It's the most beautiful tea bag I've ever seen. 🙂
However, I do often make my tea with the double pot method. One pot to boil the water and another for the fresh tea leaves. Pour the hot water into the smaller pot with the fresh tea leaves and stuff a small handful of fresh mint leaves in there too. Then let it steep a few minutes while stacked on top of the bigger pot.
easy steps for making perfect almond tea cake
Perfect Almond Tea Cake
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: 6-8 slices 1x
Description
Afternoon tea just got a little better with this perfect almond tea cake served with powdered sugar and berries.
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ cup salted butter (1 stick), room temperature
- 1-2 tablespoons add’l butter to butter the cake pan
- 1 teaspoon orange zest
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- ¼ to ½ cup of sliced almonds
- Sifted powdered sugar, topping
- Berries, optional garnish
- Mint leaves, optional garnish
NOTE: you will need a 9” or 10” cake pan, parchment paper and a hand-held blender.
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Instructions
- Place your cake pan on top of a piece of parchment paper and trace the bottom with a pencil. Cut the circle with a pair of scissors.
- Soften a chunk of butter and use it to butter the bottom and sides of your cake pan. I used paper towel to spread the butter. After you butter the pan, place the parchment paper circle on the bottom and butter that too. Set aside.
- Put your dry ingredients in a bowl: flour, sugar, baking powder. You can add a pinch of salt if you want.
- Cut the butter right into the bowl with your dry ingredients. I used a butter knife and let the pieces fall right into the bowl.
- Using a fork or pastry cutter mix the butter and flour together until it forms a slightly crumbly mixture. Should take a couple of minutes.
- This is optional, but zest about a teaspoon of orange zest from an orange or use a lemon if that’s what you have on hand.
- Crack two eggs into a small bowl and add the almond extract. Beat until combined, then add the orange zest. Beat again to combine.
- Using a hand-held mixer, add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients starting on low speed and increasing as the mixture becomes a smooth batter. This is a thicker batter just so you know.
- Transfer the batter to your buttered cake pan with a spatula and make sure to scrape the sides. Have a warm glass of water on hand to dip your spatula in order to smooth the cake batter evenly across the bottom of the pan.
- Sprinkle the sliced almonds across the top of the cake – anywhere from ¼ cup to ½ a cup.
- Bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes – use a toothpick to check for doneness.
- Let the cake cool down for about 30 minutes or so. Use a small, sharp knife and run it around the edge of the cake pan to make sure nothing is sticking there. Then flip the cake onto a plate. Let it sit a minute before slowly removing the cake pan. Carefully, and slowly, peel off the parchment paper.
- Get the plate you are serving the cake on and flip the cake back to that plate so the almond side is facing up. Sift powdered sugar over the cake just before serving. Do not put the powdered sugar on the cake while it is still warm or it will likely melt.
- Garnish the plates with optional berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries) and mint leaves.
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