Almond Cake Layered With Lemon Curd Recipes

BLUEBERRY-ALMOND CAKE WITH LEMON CURD

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter two 9-inch-round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper. Butter the parchment and dust with flour, tapping out the excess.
• Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a large bowl. Beat the butter in a separate large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually beat in the granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating until incorporated, then add the vanilla and almond extracts. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with the milk; beat until just smooth, 2 minutes.
• Divide the batter between the prepared pans and sprinkle each with 1 cup blueberries. Bake until lightly golden and a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool 10 minutes in the pans on a rack, then invert the cakes onto the rack to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, spread the almonds on a baking sheet and bake until lightly golden, about 10 minutes; set aside. Beat the heavy cream and 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes. Gently fold in the lemon curd, leaving some yellow streaks. Spread the cream mixture over 1 layer of cake almost to the edge. Place the second cake layer on top and gently press; refrigerate at least 1 hour or overnight.
• Before serving, whisk the remaining 1 cup confectioners' sugar with the lemon juice in a medium bowl until it forms a smooth glaze. (Add 1 or 2 drops of water if it's too thick.) Pour the glaze over the center of the cake and spread with a spatula or spoon to the edge, allowing some to drip down the sides. Sprinkle with the toasted almonds.

LEMON-ALMOND BUTTER CAKE

Steps:

• For the curd, combine zest, juice, sugar and eggs in a heatproof bowl, and beat well. Add butter, and place over a saucepan full of simmering water. Cook, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, until mixture thickens into curd, about 5 minutes. Strain into a bowl, and press plastic wrap onto surface to keep skin from forming. Refrigerate until cool, at least 1 1/2 hours.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9-inch spring-form pan with 1 tablespoon butter, and dust with 1 tablespoon flour, shaking out excess.
• With an electric mixer, cream the remaining butter and 1 cup sugar together until light and fluffy. Sift together the remaining flour, baking powder and salt, and stir in. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs until they start to foam. Do not overbeat or the cake will be tough. Add eggs and ground almonds to batter, and mix well.
• Scrape batter into the prepared pan. Drop 8 individual tablespoons lemon curd around perimeter of batter, leaving a 1-inch border, and taking care to space drops evenly. Drop 3 to 4 tablespoons curd into center of batter. Refrigerate remaining curd for another use. Sprinkle cake with toasted almonds and 1 to 2 tablespoons sugar, depending on taste.
• Bake until cake is toasty brown on top and a toothpick inserted into cake (not curd) comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Let cool on rack 10 minutes, then remove sides of pan, and cool completely.
• Whip cream with almond liqueur. Present cake at table, and offer whipped cream on the side.

ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Butter sides and bottoms of 2 8-inch cake or springform pans; line sides and bottoms with parchment paper. Butter paper. Place pans in freezer.
• Sift flour and salt into a small bowl. Set aside. In a mixer fitted with a paddle, beat butter and granulated sugar at high speed until fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add almond paste, a little at a time at medium speed, and beat 8 minutes. Beat in egg yolks, one at a time, and almond extract. Mix sour cream and baking soda and add to butter mixture. Reduce mixer speed to low and gradually add flour mixture, just until blended.
• Divide batter between prepared pans and spread evenly. Bake about 40 minutes to an hour, until tops are golden and spring back when lightly pressed and cakes shrink from sides of the pans. Cool in pans on wire rack. Remove sides of pans and remove paper. When ready to serve, sift confectioners' sugar on top and slice like pie.

LEMON-ALMOND BUTTER CAKE

Steps:

• Combine the lemon zest and juice in a nonreactive saucepan with the sugar and eggs and beat well. Add the butter and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, until the sugar dissolves and the mixture thickens into curd. Be sure to keep scraping the bottom of the pan during the few minutes this takes you; you don't want the eggs to scramble before the curd forms. If you're the nervous type, make the curd in a heatproof bowl over a pot of boiling water (the bowl shouldn't touch the water). The curd will take just a little longer to thicken, about 5 minutes. Strain the crud into a bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface so a skin doesn't form. Refrigerate until cool, at least 1 1/2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a springform pan with 1 tablespoon of the butter and dust it with 1 tablespoon of the flour.
• Cream the remaining 8 tablespoons butter in a large bowl with 1 cup of the sugar until light and fluffy. Sift the remaining 1 cup flour, the baking powder, and salt together and stir into the creamed butter.
• In a separate bowl, beat the eggs until they start to foam. Do not overbeat, or the cake will be tough. Add the eggs and ground almonds to the flour and butter mixture, mixing well.
• Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Drop 8 individual tablespoons of lemon curd evenly around the outside of the cake, leaving a 1-inch border around the edge. Try to place the curd so there's an even amount of cake batter between each dollop of curd. Drop 3 tablespoons curd in the center. Refrigerate any remaining curd for another use (hint: breakfast toast). Sprinkle the top of the cake with sliced almonds and 1 to 2 tablespoons sugar, according to taste.
• Bake until the cake is toasty brown on top and a toothpick or knife inserted into the cake comes out clean (be sure not to insert it near the curd), about 40 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes, then remove the sides of the pan and let cool completely on a rack.
• If serving the cake with whipped cream, add the almond liqueur to the heavy cream and beat until the cream is stiff. Sift a thin, even layer of confectioners' sugar over the top of the cake. Present the cake at the table and offer the almond whipped cream on the side.

LEMON LAYER CAKE WITH LEMON CURD

Steps:

• Beat sugar and butter for curd in a bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and yolks slowly until well combined. Beat for 1 minute more; stir in lemon juice. The mixture will look curdled; do not panic.
• Pour mixture into a saucepan and cook over low heat until it becomes smooth, about 5 minutes. Increase heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly without letting it boil, until it thickens enough to leave a path on the back of a spoon when you drag a finger through it and reaches 170 degrees F (77 degrees C), about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in lemon zest.
• Let cool to room temperature, 20 to 30 minutes. Press plastic wrap on the surface to prevent a skin from forming and chill in the refrigerator.
• While filling cools, place a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter and flour two 8- or 9-inch round cake pans.
• Sift cake flour, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Pulse 1/4 cup sugar and lemon zest together in a food processor until well combined.
• Beat butter and lemon sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 1 1/2 minutes. Add remaining sugar and beat until smooth, about 1 1/2 minutes. Beat in 1/4 of the milk until just blended. Add flour mixture alternately with remaining milk on low speed in 3 batches, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed; beat until just blended.
• Beat egg whites in another bowl on medium speed just until foamy. Add cream of tartar. Increase speed to medium-high and beat until stiff peaks form. Add 1/4 of the egg whites to the cake batter and gently fold in. Continue to gently fold in egg whites, being careful not to deflate the mixture. Divide batter between the prepared pans.
• Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake layer comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Flip right side-up and let cool on a wire rack, 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Cut cooled layers in half and layer with curd.
• Beat butter and lemon zest for frosting in a medium bowl until light and fluffy. Add confectioners' sugar and beat. Add lemon juice and beat for 1 minute. Frost the assembled cake as desired.