Italian-Style Almond and Orange Cake Recipe
This moist almond and orange cake is reminiscent of homemade bakes from southern Italy. It smells of citrus and almonds, is soft yet slightly moist in the center. Perfect with an afternoon coffee and as a simple dessert after dinner. It’s not overly sweet, so it’s easy to reach for a second slice – you’ve been warned.
This almond cake smells like a little café somewhere in southern Italy – the combination of ground almonds and orange gives a deep, slightly festive aroma without heavy creams. Thanks to the generous amount of almonds, the bake is moist inside yet satisfying, so it works both as a dessert and as a “sweet bread” with coffee. The sweetness is well balanced, so it’s easy to go back for seconds without feeling overwhelmed.
Chef's tips
Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature – especially the butter and eggs – so the batter aerates nicely and bakes evenly. Grate the orange zest only from the outer, colored layer, avoiding the white pith, which is bitter. Towards the end of baking, check the cake with a skewer – it should come out with a few moist crumbs but no raw batter; otherwise it’s easy to overbake and dry it out.
How to serve
Serve this cake with a cup of espresso, latte or Earl Grey tea – the citrus notes complement each other beautifully. For special occasions, dust it with icing sugar and serve with a dollop of whipped cream or Greek yogurt and a few fresh orange segments. It’s a very practical cake for spontaneous visits from friends, as it keeps well and tastes even better the next day.
Ingredients
- ground almonds (almond flour) you can grind peeled almonds yourself - 150 g
- flour type 450–550 - 120 g
- sugar - 150 g
- eggs at room temperature - 3 pieces
- butter melted and cooled - 120 g
- yogurt about 1/2 cup - 120 g
- orange zest and juice needed - 1 piece
- baking powder - 2 teaspoons
- vanillin sugar or vanilla extract - 1 teaspoon
- pinch of salt
- sugar for sprinkling after baking, optional - 1 tablespoon
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (top and bottom heat). Line a 22–24 cm cake tin with baking paper or grease it with butter and dust with flour.
- Wash the orange thoroughly and scald it with boiling water. Grate the zest (only the orange-colored part) on a fine grater. Squeeze out the juice – you need about 60 ml (4 tablespoons).
- In a bowl, mix the dry ingredients: wheat flour, ground almonds, baking powder and a pinch of salt.
- In a second, larger bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar and vanillin sugar with a mixer for 3–4 minutes, until the mixture is pale and slightly fluffy.
- Add the yogurt, melted and cooled butter, orange juice and zest to the egg mixture. Mix briefly on low speed or with a spoon, just until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and gently fold with a spatula or spoon until no dry flour is visible. Do not overmix so the cake stays light and fluffy.
- Pour the batter into the prepared tin and smooth the top.
- Place in the preheated oven and bake for 30–35 minutes. The cake is done when the top is golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out dry or with a few moist crumbs (but no raw batter).
- Remove the cake from the oven and leave it in the tin for 10 minutes. Then transfer to a wire rack and let it cool completely.
- Before serving, you can dust the top with icing sugar.
Storage
Store the cooled cake wrapped in cling film or in a tin at room temperature for 2–3 days. For longer storage, you can freeze individual slices well wrapped and thaw them at room temperature when needed.
