GranNini's Lemon Almond Cake - Gluten Free!

GranNini's Lemon Almond Cake

So I found this recipe on Pinterest from Cakelets and Doilies (cakeletsanddoilies) for a tasty Lemon, Ricotta and Almond Flourless Cake, which was evidently adapted from Donna Hay Magazine Winter June - July 2013.  But, alas, I didn't have half of the correct ingredients.  Determined to make the cake nonetheless, I fudged my way through the recipe, substituting willy nilly as I saw fit, and WOW, did I end up with a tasty breakfast treat!!!

I made mine the night before, and it was super moist and delicious the next day -- EVEN though I forgot that I had made it, and left it, uncovered, all night long.  I'm quite sure it will be even more moist and delicious if I were to (a) serve it up the same day or (b) cover it in an air tight container or (c) cover it with plastic wrap because I'm (gasp!) not overly paranoid about that sort of thing.

So here is my version of the tasty cake.  

Ingredients:

1/4 cup sugar (and) 1/3 cup sugar (weird measurement, I know, just go with it.)

4 egg whites (you will use the egg yolks later)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cups sugar (yes, a third measurement of sugar.  

It's just easier for me to separate out the sugar this way.)

4 egg yolks

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 Tablespoon lemon extract

10 ounces cream cheese, softened

2 1/2 cups almond meal

1/4 cup shaved / sliced almonds

powdered sugar for dusting

Directions:

1. In a mixer, whip the 4 egg whites until soft peaks form.  Slowly add in 1/4 cup sugar.  Beat a few more minutes, then beat in the final 1/3 cup sugar until stiff peaks form.  Use a rubber spatula to scrape all this tasty sweet yumminess into an awaiting bowl.
2. Preheat your oven to 325°. 
3. Line a Spring Form Pan (8 - 9 inch) with parchment paper, and spray lightly with cooking spray.
4. Cream the butter and sugar together.  Add in the egg yolks, one at a time.
5. Add in the vanilla and lemon extract.  
6. Add in the softened cream cheese, and mix thoroughly.
7. Slowly mix in the almond meal.  (By the way, I buy mine at Trader Joe's, because, well, Trader Joe's is awesome.  I ❤ Trader Joe's.)
8. Slop in 1/3 (or so) of the stiff, sweetened egg whites.  Mix in thoroughly.
9. Gently then add in the remaining 2/3 of the egg whites.  Very, very gently stir in the egg whites until they are just incorporated.
10. Gently ladle your cake batter into the awaiting Spring Form Pan. 
11. Lightly cover with shaved / sliced almonds. 
12. Bake at 325° for 40 to 45 minutes, or until the middle is no longer jiggly.
13. Allow the cake to cool completely.
14. Release the cake from the Spring Form Pan.
15. Dust the cake lightly with powdered sugar and serve.

A few things to consider:

* I used a traditional 8 inch cake pan, and ended up with way too much batter left over.  It positively lopped over the edges and domed at the top.  So I ladled some of the extra batter into a very small cake pan, and had a tasty snack (mmm!) while awaiting the remaining cake to cool.  I do believe that a deeper Spring Form Pan would make all the difference.

*I forgot to add my almonds before I baked the cake, and simply added them after.  That worked okay.  And I'm sure no one was to the wiser. But I do believe that should I make this again, I would add the decorative sliced almonds BEFORE I baked the cake, so that they could adhere to the cake itself a bit.  

* This cake was very moist -- quite the surprise for a flourless cake!  In the future, however, if I didn't mind adding a wee bit of gluten, I might consider changing up the recipe to add in an additional 1/2 cup flour, and reducing the almond flour by 1/2 a cup.  The texture was "nutty," due to the almond flour, and I much prefer a very smooth textured cake.  BUT, that said, I've never made a gluten free dessert before, and I was most pleased with the tasty deliciousness that this cake provided.  I couldn't believe how moist it was, even the next day after I'd forgotten to tuck it away in an airtight container, or at least cover it with saran wrap.

* ALSO, when I flipped my cake out of the cake pan, I noticed that the bottom of the cake was quite a bit prettier than the top, and that the top sank just a bit.  So I flipped the cake back over again using a second plate, and used the bottom for the top.  I was much happier with the results, even though I did end up with several crumbs poking out here and there.  Because the cake was so moist, I simply pressed the crumbs back into the cake, and the problem was solved.  (Even if I did kinda sorta accidentally on purpose nibble on as many of them as I could before pressing the rest into the cake.)

A VERY tasty gluten-free cake.  And if I hadn't even reminded you it was gluten free, you never would have noticed.  Oh so tasty and delish!

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