French Almond Cake with Green Tea Honey Glaze
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Oh. My. Golly. Goodness.
Don’t let the simple appearance of this cake fool you – there’s nothing simple about the flavor. Almonds, vanilla, green tea and honey combine to make this a truly remarkable cake. Light and airy, layers of flavor, and the perfect touch of moistness make this a cake you will long remember.
This cake was created by request of Adam Bird from London (Make a Request!). He wrote, “When I was in France a few years ago, I tried a green tea cake. Yes, I know it sounds weird, but in actual fact it was wonderful! It was a rather dense, sticky, almondy sponge with a very delicate green tea flavour over the top. Not something I had seen before, or have seen since, but it was so delicious that I’d love to be able to make it at home.” Round up the ingredients and get out the baking pan, because you’re all in for a treat!
This was an experimental cake. I had never made anything quite like this before either. I was intrigued and got to work on it. As I conceptualized it in my mind, I knew I wanted something with a very light and delicate crumb that would sip, instead of gulp, up the moisture of the green tea without it becoming overly soggy and “water-logged.” I wanted something that would accommodate the moisture while maintaining an airy crumb. Using only a little flour, several egg whites beaten separately, and ground almonds to create a light crumbly texture, would be key.
I love honey in my fruit and herbal teas. The combination of green tea and honey as a delicately and not overly goopy glaze sounded perfect and turned out beautifully. The cake drank it right up and still maintained that perfectly light and airy crumb.
Thanks for putting in this request, Adam – we have another winner!
French Almond Cake with Green Tea Honey Glaze Recipe
Let’s get started!
Heat 1/2 cup of water until very hot, but not boiling, and pour over 6 bags of green tea (green tea becomes bitter if you use boiling water). Let steep for 1-3 minutes then remove the tea bags and discard. Note: Use more tea bags if you prefer a stronger green tea flavor.
Place the butter and sugar in a bowl.
Cream the mixture with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. Don’t become impatient with this process, it’s key to the success of your cake. Add the yolks, one at a time, continuing to beat until combined.
Add the vanilla and almond extract and beat just until combined.
Gently fold in the almond mixture with a rubber spatula.
Place the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl and beat with a mixer on medium high speed until they become foamy. Add the cream of tartar and continue to beat until stiff peaks form.
Stiff peaks means that when you pull the beater away, the peaks will stand up (see picture below). Be careful not to over-mix though.
Sift the flour and baking powder in a small bowl. Sifting is important in order to achieve and light and airy crumb.
Gently fold in 1/3 of the egg whites.
Next fold in 1/3 of the flour mixture, alternating the remaining egg whites and flour. Fold very gently and be careful not to over-stir. This is absolutely key to the success of the cake. If a few lumps remain, that is alright.
Pour the batter into a greased 9X2 inch round pan (or you can also use an 8×8 inch square pan) and bake at 350 degrees F for abou minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Be careful not to over-bake or the cake will be dry.
Remove the cake from the oven and let it remain in the pan for 10 minutes before removing.
Invert it carefully and then place top side up on a cake platter.
Look at that beautiful, flaky top!
Poke several small holes with a toothpick around the top of the cake to allow the glaze to absorb more easily in to the cake.
To make the glaze, place the green tea and honey in a small saucepan. Heat until the honey is dissolved, then remove from the heat.
Pour the glaze evenly over the whole cake.
Let the cake sit for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Deliciously light, airy, tender and moist. Enjoy! (You will, I promise)
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French Almond Cake with Green Tea Honey Glaze
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter , at room temperature
- 3/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 cup almond flour , or grind your own which I prefer for a better texture; directions below
- 3 egg yolks
- 3 egg whites
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 2 teaspoons quality pure vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon quality almond extract
- 1/2 cup cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 cup concentrated green tea , brewed with 6 or more tea bags, decaf or regular
- 3 tablespoons honey
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9x2 inch round pan or a 8x8 inch square pan.
- If grinding your own almonds: Use 3/4 cup raw whole almonds. Blanch the almonds to remove their skins by pouring boiling water over them to cover. Let them sit for about 5 minutes or until the peels slip off easily. Discard the peels and let the almonds air dry for a few hours, ideally overnight. Grind the almonds with 1/4 of the sugar.
- Cream the butter and 1/2 cup of sugar until light and fluffy, about 4-5 minutes. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating until the mixture is pale and fluffy, another 3-4 minutes. Add the vanilla and almond extract and beat just until combined. Fold in the ground almond/almond flour.Beat the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl on medium high speed until foamy, then add the cream of tartar. Continue to beat until stiff peaks form.Sift the cake flour and baking powder into a small bowl.Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites, then 1/3 of the flour mixture. Repeat with the remaining egg whites and flour. Be very careful not to over-stir. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Be careful not to over-bake.Remove the cake from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes. Carefully invert the cake and the place top side up on a cake platter. Poke some small holes around the top of the cake with a toothpick to allow the glaze to fully absorb.
- To make the green tea honey glaze, place the green tea and honey in a small saucepan and heat until the honey is dissolved, then remove from the heat.Pour the glaze over the cake and let the cake sit for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Notes
Hi, I’m Kimberly Killebrew and welcome to Daring Gourmet where you'll find delicious originals, revitalized classics, and simply downright good eats from around the world! Originally from Germany, later raised in England, world-traveled, and now living in the U.S., from my globally-influenced kitchen I invite you to tour the world through your taste buds!
I love this recipe as is. It’s one of our family’s favorite recipes and I make it often. I have made some minor changes that you might like:
1. I found out that I’m mildly allergic to green tea. The flavor us great, but I start getting wheezy when I drink it. I’ve changed out the syrup to honey with a little oj, or lemon juice and it’s delicious too.
2. I only have one mixing bowl for my mixer, so I whip up the egg whites first and transfer them to another bowl. This makes it easier to clean out the bowl for the rest of the batter.
3. I dust the pan with a little almond flour, which gives the cake a slightly toasted taste.
4. After I glaze the cake, I top it with freshly toasted sliced almonds and a light dusting of powdered sugar.
Thank you so much for the feedback and ideas, Cynthia, and I’m so happy this has become a family favorite!
Luckily I can easily purchase ground almonds here in England so needn’t go through the route of having to grind my own. However, would you recommend adding that 1/2 cup of sugar used in the grinding to the overall mix?
Hi Marri, yes, just add it to the batter with the rest of the sugar. I regularly use pre-ground almonds for convenience but if I’m after the best flavor possible, I’ll grind my own as they do have a better, fresher, stronger flavor. Happy baking!
I like Matcha tea (also green tea, but special). I wonder whether I could add a tsp of Matcha tea powder in the flour (for flavour). It may alter the colour of the cake…and I love the way your cake looks.
I only used it once in some cookies and the taste was weirdly good. The colour of the cookies was light green.
Hi Sabrina, I’m not familiar with Matcha tea but if you like the flavor by all means add some to the cake. The most important thing is that it tastes good, even if it’s a little green :)
Hi!!
I love green tea and honey!! Can’t imagine how well this cake would taste!!! I have to try this recipe next! but cake flour is not readily available in Australia . Is there a substitute for cake flour?
Hi Elena! Yes, there is an easy solution – you can make cake flour yourself and it’s super simple! For every cup of all-purpose flour you use, remove 2 tablespoons of it and add 2 tablespoons of cornstarch in its place. Then sift the flour/cornstarch combination at least 3 times in a row to fully incorporate the mixture. That’s it – you now have cake flour! Happy baking! :)
Excellent! Will definitely bake this tomorrow! Will let you know the results ! :)
Wonderful, please do, Elena!
P.S. Elena, another great version of this is the French Almond Cake with Lavender Lemon Glaze. Heavenly!
Thanks for this wonderful recipe! I baked the cake , let it rest and poured the syrup over :) I might have put in too much honey, could not taste the green tea :( but the cake is simply delicious! Only thing was that my cake did not rise much at all..it was really short! and my batter was thick and little as well. Maybe my cake tin was too large to fit the batter! I shall attempt this again soon because its just so yummy!
I’ve seen that almond cake recipe with lavender lemon glaze ! awww, you have a sweet family, really. I enjoyed looking those pictures ! I love lavender! Its smells amazing, so fragrant! I will give it a go when I come across lavender! Might have to visit the lavender farm for that! Thanks once again!
Wonderful! This cake doesn’t rise very much. It’s not a tall cake and is probably 1 1/2 inches at the most, so unless yours was much flatter, it turned out correctly. The green tea flavor will depend on the brand as well. Some are weaker than others. Next time you could simply use more tea bags. It’s a very subtle, delicate flavor anyway so it’s not going to be very strong. Thanks for making this and for your feedback as well as your kind words. Best, Kimberly
how much almond meal does 3/4 cup almonds yield as I have almond meal with me ?
Reena
Hi Reena! I’m excited you’re going to try this cake! I wouldn’t recommend using almond meal. It’s much finer, drier, and denser than freshly ground almonds. It won’t impart the same texture or flavor. If you don’t have access to whole almonds, then I’d say use about 1/2 cup of almond meal since it is denser.
oh my!! how could I missed this post? Sounds mouthwatering and looks so delicious!
Hello, Bakeaffairs, I’m so happy to hear from you again!! We really, really loved this cake. In fact, just this very morning on his way out to work my husband requested I make it again. This time I think I’m going to experiment with a lavender lemon glaze. I haven’t tried that combination before, but it sounds like it would be fabulous!
Oooh,la la. Merci beaucoup, Kimberly
Soyez le bienvenu, Carole! :)
Kimberly, thanks for joining the cake extravaganza – I am simply blown away by all the fantastic cakes – and extremely hungry! Cheers
Hi Carole! There are some great ones for sure! Thanks for letting me include mine :)