French Lavender Almond Cake
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A Daring Gourmet original, with this its light and moist lemon-flavored crumb and its elegant lavender-infused glaze, this French-inspired Lavender Almond Cake is an absolute DREAM!
Another Daring Gourmet original to enjoy before the Summer is through. This cake is special. The smell of it baking, its magnificent flavor, its delicate texture and graceful appearance…this cake is absolutely delightful.
I love lavender. It’s such a pretty flower, has such a wonderful aroma, and has so many amazing uses. It will always remind me of the nearly 7 years I lived in England. We lived about an hour from Norfolk which is home to the famous Norfolk Lavender Farm. My mom and I would often take a leisurely drive up there, walk through the aromatic lavender gardens, and visit the shop to sample all their lavender-made goodies. Lavender also reminds me of the couples trip my husband and I took to the south of France a few years ago. We explored Provence and were able to drive through miles and miles and lavender fields. It was stunning! So lavender holds an element of nostalgia for me and it made this cake all the more enjoyable.
While this cake is quite easy to make, its a dessert fit for the most elegant of tea rooms. Made with very little flour, it relies on satiny whipped egg whites and ground almonds to provide its wonderful texture and “lift.”
No fancy assembling or decorating required. The pretty lavender-colored hue of the glaze sprinkled with lavender blossoms gives this cake class and elegance. Lay a few fresh or dried sprigs of lavender next to it, and the presentation is complete.
For this recipe you can use dried lavender flowers from your own garden (lavender is so easy to dry and store) or you can purchase some from a specialty shop or online.
French Almond Lavender Cake Recipe
Let’s get started!
Cream the butter and sugar, then add the egg yolk and beat until combined. (I’m not sure why I only added one yolk for the picture, but there are 3 yolks in this recipe.)
Add the lemon zest and vanilla extract and beat until combined.
In a separate, clean bowl with no trace of oil in it, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar and continue to beat until satiny and stiff peaks form. (It definitely looks like I need new beaters!)
The egg whites are ready when you pull the beaters out and a stiff peak forms and curls over just at the tip.
In a separate bowl, sift the cake flour with the baking powder.
Stir the almond flour into the batter mixture.
Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in 1/3 of the egg whites.
Then gently fold in 1/3 of the flour mixture. Repeat with the remaining egg whites and flour, being careful not to over-stir.
Grease an 8×8 inch square baking pan.
In a preheated oven at 350 degrees F, bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and let sit for 10 minutes.
While the cake is sitting, make the glaze: Combine the lemon juice and lavender flowers in a small saucepan or microwaveable dish, bring to a boil, remove and let steep for at least 5 minutes. Use a mesh sieve to strain the lavender flowers.
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.
Combine the lemon lavender mixture with the powdered sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved.
Pour the glaze over the cake.
Use a knife to evenly spread it. While the glaze is still wet, sprinkle a few lavender flowers over it.
Let the cake sit until the glaze has set, at least 15 minutes.
Cut the cake into squares and serve.
Enjoy!
For more delicious French goodies try my:
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French Lavender Almond Cake
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter , at room temperature
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup white granulated sugar , depending on desired sweetness
- ¾ cup almond flour
- 3 egg yolks
- 3 egg whites
- ½ teaspoon cream of tartar
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- ½ cup cake flour , sifted
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- For the Lavender Lemon Glaze:
- 2 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons dried lavender flowers
- 1 cup powdered sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 8×8 inch square pan.
- Combine the cake flour and baking powder in a small bowl. Set aside.In a larger bowl, cream the butter and ½ 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, almond extract, and lemon zest and beat just until combined. Fold in the 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.Fold in ⅓ of the egg whites, then ⅓ 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.
- While the cake is cooling, make the glaze: Combine the lemon juice and lavender flowers in a small saucepan or microwaveable dish, bring to a boil, remove and let steep for at least 5 minutes. Use a mesh sieve to strain the lavender flowers. Stir the powdered sugar and lavender liquid together until the sugar is dissolved.
- Poke some small holes around the top of the cake with a toothpick to allow the glaze to fully absorb. Pour the glaze over the cake and let the cake sit for at least 20 minutes before serving.
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet September 12, 2013
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! I made this in a cupcake style for a baby shower along with pink velvet. Everyone devoured them before I could get a bite, leaving only some pink velvet. Since Thanksgiving is all about being thankful for harvests too, I’m making this with blackberries from my garden and lavender glaze. I’m going to cut it into rounds to fit 4oz Mason jars because I’m doing a couple of different desserts for Thanksgiving.
What a great idea, Jennifer, thanks so much for sharing and for the feedback! Happy Thanksgiving!
I made this for Easter and it was fabulous! I think I had too much lemon juice in glaze so it didn’t get creamy, but soaked into top. Thanks for another great recipe!
Wonderful, Gail, I’m so glad you enjoyed it, thank you!
Tried making this awesome cake and it collapsed in the center. Thought maybe because of high altitude (6500 ft) it had too much air/leavening in it. Made it again without beating the egg whites, came out exactly the same; collapsed in the center. Checked oven temp and it’s accurate. I want to make this cake for my daughter’s Easter Sunday brunch. What do I need to do differently to make this cake work at my altitude? BTW, regardless of the collapse, it tastes delicious!
Absolutely love your creative idea with french almond cake with lavender lemon glaze! Can I post it on my blog? Thanks, Kimberly for sharing!
Thanks, Julia! Thanks also for asking – my content is all copyrighted and needs to remain on my blog only, but you’re welcome to link to my blog post.
Look so delicious!!! I want to eat all of this at the first moment when I see them.Thank you for sharing these food.
Your cake looks amazing and I can’t wait to try it.
Thanks for sharing.
I’m wondering if it’s possible to substitute more almond extract and forego the ground blanched almonds? If so, what might the equivalent measurement of extra extract be?
Thanks so much~
Hi Britta, I wouldn’t add more almond extract, the flavor will be way too overpowering. The purpose of the ground almonds isn’t flavor, it’s texture, so for the best texture I wouldn’t omit those.
This cake looks lovely! Nice and light. :)
This looks so good!
I made this last summer and everyone said they would be happy to be my guinea pig after that. I skipped the lavender flowers and used my lavender liqour with the lemon juice to make the glaze. Wonderful!
Fantastic, Candy, and congrats! I’m glad to hear everyone enjoyed it, thanks for the feedback!
I’m looking forward to making this! Do you know of any gluten free sub for the cake flour? I’m having a guest with celiac disease but would really not want to exclude her from eating this dessert. Thanks in advance.
Hi Jen, awesome! Gluten free baking is so temperamental that I’d hesitate to recommend anything without first experimenting with it myself. I would have to so some tweaking here an there to ensure the cake was sufficiently moist as well (GF cakes are notoriously dry). If you find a good substitute and ratio and it comes out well, please let us know!
dios bendiga tu familia y tus manos,encontre tu blog por casualidad y me encanta lo que publicas pondre manos a la obra y te contare como me va,gracias
Thank you very much for your kind words, I’m happy you found my site!
Your cake looks amazing and I’m going to try to make it so I have a question about the glaze….does 2 1/2 tbl of lemon juice provide enough liquid to glaze the whole cake? No milk needed?
ChicagoBaker, I know 2 1/2 tbs doesn’t sound like much, but that’s all the liquid you need for 1 cup of powdered sugar to be rendered into a glaze. We LOVE this cake! Happy baking!
I ran into your blog by accident (so glad I did!) I almost never make a post, but when I continued to read about you and your hubby appreciation…I just had to tell you that I think you make a gorgeous couple! There is a true radiant of a very genuine happy-vibe-thang when I look at your wedding pic. Congrats, and many loving years and wishes to you both…kids too. I can imagine you guys recreating that photo in ohhhh 25+ years or so. Btw, the lavender-lemon cake is stunning, and your pics and instructions are amongst the best I have seen on any blog. I will return often. thx for doing all this and sharing it!
Thank you so much, Ann-Marie, that is very kind of you! :) I’m so happy you found my blog and look forward to your return visits! Best, Kimberly
French Almond Cake with Lavender Lemon Glaze http://t.co/qoxOymHupL http://t.co/NtVAeZLBPu
Hehe. Funny guy! :) Love the comment about the 70s looking Betty Crocker cookbook.
And this cake looks lovely! Nice and light. :)
Thanks, Erin! Yeah, he’s never going to let me live that one down – and I still have the flower arrangement! ;)