High Altitude One Layer Almond Cake

A high altitude recipe for a moist, one layer almond cake, flavored with rich brown butter, nutty almond flour, almond extract and a hint of cardamom, and frosted with almond buttercream. While you can bake and serve this simple, homemade almond cake any time of the year, I think it’s especially wonderful for the holidays. After all, a Christmas dessert table just isn’t complete without almond cake.

You might also love these high altitude recipes for cardamom almond star bread, classic almond biscotti, and almond cream cheese scones.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Perfect Anytime Almond Cake. What’s great about this single layer almond cake recipe is that it’s appropriate for any occasion, from birthdays to holidays to just a day that you’re craving some cake. With just one layer, it’s not as fussy as a layer cake, but just as delicious. The almond flour adds nuttiness and moisture, the cake is incredibly soft and tender, and the edges form a golden brown crust, very much like a pound cake.

Perfect for Christmas. Almond pastries will forever be my favorite, and I always make something sweet and almondy for Christmas, whether it’s an almond loaf cake, almond biscotti or last year’s cardamom almond star bread. I just love baking a simple almond cake to keep on hand for Christmas, along with the pies, salted caramels and Christmas cookies.

High Altitude Tested. I develop all of the recipes on my site for Denver’s altitude of 5,280 feet.

See the recipe card at the end of the post for the full ingredients list and instructions.

Ingredients

Cake

• Butter. To add the most incredible flavor to this cake, don’t skip the step of browning the butter first.
• Granulated Sugar. Adds sweetness and moisture, as well as creates the caramelized, golden brown edges on the cake.
• Eggs. Gives the cake structure and helps the batter to hold together.
• Vanilla + Almond Extracts. Flavor.
• Whole Milk + Sour Cream. Adds fat and moisture for a moist, tender cake.
• Flour. All-purpose flour gives the cake structure and strength.
• Salt. Balances the sweetness and enhances the flavor of the almonds.
• Baking Powder. Leavening agent, so the cake rises when it bakes.
• Cardamom. A spice commonly paired with almonds in Scandinavian baked goods, cardamom adds a lovely complementary flavor to the almonds.
• Almond Flour. The almond flour not only adds more almond flavor, but also moisture and a nutty richness that makes this cake just so good. You can also use very finely chopped almonds if you don’t have almond flour. An almond cake with almond flour will have a more dense, nutty texture than a vanilla cake that’s just flavored with almond extract.

Buttercream

• Butter. I use unsalted butter, but you can use salted and just omit the extra salt in the recipe.
• Vanilla + Almond Extracts. Flavor.
• Powdered Sugar. Sweetens and thickens the buttercream.
• Salt. Balances the sweetness.
• Meringue Powder. Adds stability.
• Almonds. Adds texture and crunch.

Instructions

Cake

• Preheat the oven to 350 F, and position a rack in the center of the oven. Line a 9-inch square baking dish with parchment paper, or spray it with non-stick baking spray.
• In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Continue to cook the butter until nutty, golden brown milk solids form at the bottom of the pan. This process might take about 10 minutes. First the butter will hiss and splatter as the water evaporates, then as it quiets down, a layer of foam will form on top of the butter. This means the butter is done. Immediately remove from the heat, and scrape the butter, including the brown milk solids, into a large bowl. Let cool for 10 minutes.

• In a bowl, whisk together the cooled brown butter with the granulated sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, almond extract, milk and sour cream, until combined.

• In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, baking powder and cardamom. Add the almond flour, then whisk until everything is evenly distributed.

• Add the dry ingredients to the wet, whisking just until moistened.

• Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for about 32-35 minutes, until the top springs back when gently touched, or a toothpick or cake tester comes out clean. Set the pan on a wire rack, covered with a clean kitchen towel, and cool completely before frosting.
• This cake will have a golden brown crust around the edges, very much like a pound cake, and it’s absolutely delicious. If you prefer, you can trim off the dark edge before serving.

Buttercream

• In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, vanilla extract and almond extract for 1 minute, until smooth.
• Add the powdered sugar, meringue powder and salt, mixing on low until combined. Whip the buttercream on medium high speed for 4-5 minutes, until very light and fluffy, scraping the bowl down several times while mixing. Turn the speed down to “stir” and mix for 1 more minute. Fold in the chopped almonds, reserving some to sprinkle on top of the buttercream.

• Spread the buttercream onto the cooled cake, swirling it with an offset spatula, and sprinkle with the rest of the chopped almonds. Cut the cake into 16 squares (for small servings) or 9 squares for large servings.

Recipe Variations

• Sheet Cake. For a larger almond sheet cake, double the cake recipe and bake it in a 9×13 pan, checking it for doneness around 35-40 minutes. Increase the buttercream by 1 1/2 times.
• Layer Cake. For a small two layer cake, divide the cake batter between two 6-inch cake pans and bake for about the same amount of time. You may need to slightly increase the buttercream to have enough to cover the cake.
• Chocolate Chips. For a chocolate chip almond cake, just add about 1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips (mini or regular sized) or roughly chopped chocolate to the cake batter. Sprinkle some more mini chocolate chips or chopped chocolate on top of the buttercream or icing.
• Icing instead of Buttercream. I made this cake again for Christmas weekend, only this time I made a simple powdered sugar icing instead of the buttercream. The almond cake with almond icing was incredible, and you don’t even need a mixer to make the icing. For the icing, simply whisk together the following ingredients until smooth and spread over the cake while the cake is still slightly warm. Before the icing crusts over, scatter chopped or sliced almonds on top and a little coarse sparkling sugar. Let the cake cool completely and allow the icing to set before cutting into squares.
  • 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 1/2 tbsp meringue powder (optional, but it helps the icing set more quickly)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp almond extract
  • 3 tbsp whole milk

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

Can I use chopped almonds instead of almond flour?

Yes, you can use very finely chopped almonds if you don’t have any almond flour.

What can I use if I don’t have any sour cream?

If you’re out of sour cream, just replace it with more whole milk, and add 1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar.

Do I have to use the meringue powder in the buttercream?

I always add a little meringue powder to my buttercream for stability, but you can leave it out if you don’t keep it on hand.

How long will this cake stay fresh?

Store your one layer almond cake in an airtight container, and it will stay moist and soft for up to 3 days.

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