This high altitude burnt almond cake features three layers of soft almond flavored vanilla cake, frosted with fluffy almond buttercream, and covered in toasted sliced almonds.
You might also love these high altitude recipes for Italian almond cake, almond poppy seed layer cake, and almond cream cheese coffee cake.
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What is Burnt Almond Cake?
A burnt almond cake is typically a soft almond flavored cake that’s filled with almond pastry cream or almond custard (which is generally just vanilla custard flavored with almond extract). The cake is then frosted with almond buttercream and covered in candied or “burnt” sugared almonds.
I made the decision to make my burnt almond cake without pastry cream, simply because the filling requires the cake to be refrigerated, and this type of cake and buttercream is far better served at room temperature than served cold. Pastry cream filling also makes assembling the cake layers much trickier, since they tend to slip and slide from the soft filling, unless you use more corn starch for a thicker consistency.
And as far as candying the almonds, which is usually done by tossing almonds with egg whites and sugar, then baking them until caramelized, the extra sugar just didn’t seem necessary to me. So I simply toasted my almonds until golden brown and crunchy, and they look just gorgeous covering the cake without adding excessive sweetness.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Easy to Decorate. If your cake decorating skills leave something to be desired, you’ll love how simple it is to make this cake beautiful, just by pressing the toasted almonds all over the buttercream.
For Almond Lovers. I have many recipes for almond pastries and baked goods on my website, because it’s truly one of my all time favorite flavors.
Soft and Moist for Days. Today’s almond cake recipe is based on my ever popular vanilla cake that bakes up perfectly soft and fluffy every time. This is a vanilla cake with almond extract, not almond flour, which would make it more dense.
High Altitude Tested. I develop all the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet. If you’re at a lower or higher elevation, please see my FAQs for guidance on adjusting recipes for your altitude.
See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.
Ingredients
Cake
- Cake Flour. Cake flour makes a very soft, light and fluffy vanilla cake, as it contains a lower percentage of protein than all-purpose flour.
- Granulated Sugar. Adds sweetness and moisture.
- Baking Powder. Leavening agent, so the cake rises as it bakes.
- Salt. Balances the sweetness.
- Eggs. Add moisture and strength. You’ll be using 2 whole eggs, plus 2 extra whites, so save the leftover yolks for another recipe.
- Buttermilk. The acidity in the buttermilk tenderizes the cake crumb so it’s incredibly soft, moist and fluffy.
- Butter + Vegetable Oil. A combination of melted butter and oil creates the best balance of flavor, moisture and lightness in this recipe.
- Vanilla + Almond Extracts. Flavor.
Buttercream
- Sliced Almonds. Be sure to use sliced almonds, not slivered or chopped almonds. I buy big bags of sliced almonds at Costco, and keep them refrigerated with my other containers of raw, unsalted nuts.
- Butter. I always use unsalted butter, but you can certainly use salted for your buttercream, and just omit the extra salt.
- Powdered Sugar. Sweetens and thickens the buttercream.
- Meringue Powder. Adds stability and improves the texture.
- Salt. Balances the sweetness and enhances the flavor of the toasted almonds.
- Vanilla + Almond Extracts. Flavor.
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Spray the bottoms of three 8-inch round cake pans with non-stick baking spray.(If making half the recipe, use three 6-inch round cake pans.)
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt, then whisk until evenly distributed.
- Add the eggs, egg whites, buttermilk, melted butter, oil, vanilla and almond extracts, and whisk until combined, about 10-15 seconds. A few lumps in the batter are okay; take care not to over mix. Divide the batter between the cake pans. Tap a few times against the counter to pop any large air bubbles.
- Bake the cakes for about 21-25 minutes, or until a cake tester or a toothpick comes out clean, and the tops spring back when lightly touched.
- Set the pans on a wire rack, cover them loosely with a clean kitchen towel, and cool completely before frosting. When ready to frost and assemble the cake, remove the cakes from the pans. If the cakes have a domed top, you can slice off a small portion of the dome with a sharp knife, for easier assembly.
Buttercream
- While the cake is cooling, you can toast the almonds. Preheat the oven to 300 F, and spread the sliced almonds in an even layer over a baking sheet. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, stirring once or twice throughout so they toast evenly, until golden brown. Set aside to cool completely.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter for about 1 minute, until smooth. With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar by spoonfuls, the meringue powder and salt, mixing until combined. Add the extracts. Increase the speed to medium and whip for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl down several times, until very light and fluffy. Turn the speed down to “stir” and mix for 1 more minute.
Assembly
- Stack and fill the cooled cake layers with the buttercream. Frost the cake all over with a thin “crumb coat” of buttercream, and chill for 20 minutes. Then frost all over with a final coat of buttercream. It doesn’t have to look perfect, since it will be covered with almonds.
- Take handfuls of the cooled, toasted almonds, and press them against the sides and over the top of the cake. Gather up what falls off and continue to press them into the frosting, until the cake is covered with almonds.
Be sure to read all of my BAKING FAQs where I discuss ingredients, substitutions and common questions with cake making, so that you can be successful in your own baking! I also suggest reading these comprehensive posts on making Perfect American Buttercream, How to Stack, Fill, Crumb Coat and Frost Layer Cakes and How to Use Piping Bags.
Frequently Asked Questions
Store the leftover cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Almond flour will make the cake a little more dense and moist, but I haven’t tested it in this recipe. See my almond amaretto cake recipe instead.
The photographed cake in today’s post is half the recipe baked in three 6-inch cake pans.
You Might Also Like
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High Altitude Burnt Almond Cake
All recipes on Curly Girl Kitchen are developed for high altitude at 5,280 feet. See FAQs for adjusting to higher or lower elevations.
Equipment
- Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment
- 8-inch cake pans (x3)
Ingredients
Cake
- 3 ¼ cups cake flour, fluffed, spooned and leveled
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 2 large egg whites, room temperature
- 1 ½ cups whole or low fat buttermilk, room temperature
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled for 10 minutes
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp almond extract
Buttercream
- 1 ¼ cups sliced almonds
- 1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3 cups powdered sugar
- 2 tsp meringue powder, optional
- ¼ tsp coarse Kosher salt (if using table salt, use half the amount)
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
- ¾ tsp almond extract
Instructions
Cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Spray the bottoms of three 8-inch round cake pans with non-stick baking spray.(If making half the recipe, use three 6-inch round cake pans.)
- In a bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt, then whisk until evenly distributed.
- Add the eggs, egg whites, buttermilk, melted butter, oil, vanilla and almond extracts, and whisk until combined, about 10-15 seconds. A few lumps in the batter are okay; take care not to over mix. Divide the batter between the cake pans. Tap a few times against the counter to pop any large air bubbles.
- Bake the cakes for about 21-25 minutes, or until a cake tester or a toothpick comes out clean, and the tops spring back when lightly touched.
- Set the pans on a wire rack, cover them loosely with a clean kitchen towel, and cool completely before frosting. When ready to frost and assemble the cake, remove the cakes from the pans. If the cakes have a domed top, you can slice off a small portion of the dome with a sharp knife, for easier assembly.
Buttercream
- While the cake is cooling, you can toast the almonds. Preheat the oven to 300 F, and spread the sliced almonds in an even layer over a baking sheet. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, stirring once or twice throughout so they toast evenly, until golden brown. Set aside to cool completely.
- In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter for about 1 minute, until smooth. With the mixer on low, add the powdered sugar by spoonfuls, the meringue powder and salt, mixing until combined. Add the extracts. Increase the speed to medium and whip for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl down several times, until very light and fluffy. Turn the speed down to "stir" and mix for 1 more minute.
Assembly
- Stack and fill the cooled cake layers with the buttercream. Frost the cake all over with a thin "crumb coat" of buttercream, and chill for 20 minutes. Then frost all over with a final coat of buttercream. It doesn't have to look perfect, since it will be covered with almonds.
- Take handfuls of the cooled, toasted almonds, and press them against the sides and over the top of the cake. Gather up what falls off and continue to press them into the frosting, until the cake is covered with almonds.
Deborah Wright
Hi I’m wanting to make this cake for a big game night with friends coming up! Have you ever made it GF? Do you think I could use the 1-1 GF flour as equal substitute for reg AP Flour?
Heather Smoke
I have not, but many people have reported that cup-for-cup GF flour works well in my cake recipes. Sometimes, you need to slightly increase the liquid, though.