Although it is called a “cake”, this wonderful dessert is more like a moist, dense, chewy cookie. It is full of wonderful almond flavor and is very addictive. You’re going to LOVE it!
This…has to be one of my all time favorite Christmas treats. It’s one of those foods that brings you back time and again for “just one more bite and then I’ll stop”.
I made several of these a few years ago and gave them as neighbor gifts for Christmas. One neighbor said that after she tasted it, she let each of her children have a small piece and then hid the rest of it for herself. I can’t blame her, I think that’s a perfect thing to do.
The recipe comes from my mother in-law. She got it during her time in Sweden, from their family cook. It instantly became a huge family favorite. You are going to love this recipe for its simplicity, but even more for its wonderful “almondy” taste. Although it is labeled as a cake, its texture is more like a chewy cookie. It should be slightly crispy on the outside and dense and moist on the inside, so get the idea of ‘cake’ right on out of your mind. Your favorite part will probably be the middle where it is almost creamy – be still, my beating heart.
Tips and Tricks
Flour. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup. Avoid ‘scooping’ the flour into the cup because this may cause you to pack too much flour into the cup. Too much flour will produce a heavy, dense, dry product. Essentially, you will have made a Swedish almond brick.
Almond Extract. Resist the temptation to add additional almond extract to this recipe. It is not like vanilla extract and will make the cake bitter or medicinal tasting. Although one teaspoon may not sound like much, it is plenty and will give a wonderful almondy flavor.
Almonds. An alternative to slivered almonds is whole almonds, processed in a food processor. Use the “grating” disk. It will essentially shave the almonds and/or grate them into small pieces. I have also used sliced almonds and they work very well, too.
Mixing. Swedish Almond Cake is amazingly easy to make and is stirred with a spoon, not a mixer. Get out your favorite big mixing spoon and go to town. Alternatively, a whisk can be used to work the flour/sugar and butter together. Note: When the flour/sugar and butter are combined, the mixture will be crumbly or grainy, similar to coarse sand.
Gift Giving. If you use Swedish Almond Cake for gift giving, bake it in a disposable aluminum pie tin. It can be dressed up with in plastic wrap which is gathered at the top into a rosette (sort of) or pompom and tied with colorful Christmas ribbon. For a fancier gift, bake the cake in a glass pie plate or other nice pie plate and gift both the cake and the pie plate. This one or this one from Emile Henry are my favorites. They are impress-your-boss beautiful. This one is an understated, every day workhorse, but still worthy of gift-giving, especially with Swedish Almond Cake on board. Easy, easy, easy!
How To Make Swedish Almond Cake
You may also like:
- Swedish Apple Pie
- Swedish Beetroot and Apple Salad (Rodbetsallad)
- Swedish Red Cabbage
- Swedish Meatballs
Swedish Almond Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 cup white all-purpose flour spooned into measuring cup, do not pack
- ½ cup butter, softened (NOT margarine)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/4 cup slivered almonds, more or less per personal preference
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Butter a 9-inch pie plate; set aside.
- In a large bowl, stir together sugar and flour. Stir in butter. The mixture will be somewhat crumbly.
- Whisk the eggs and almond flavoring together, then stir into the sugar, flour and butter mixture.
- Spread evenly in a lightly buttered pie plate. Sprinkle slivered almonds on top.
- Bake for about 25-35 minutes until edges are light golden brown. Cut into wedges while still slightly warm. 16 wedges is a nice size for easy handling.
- Store at room temperature, covered with plastic wrap.
Notes
- Do NOT increase the almond extract. This particular extract tends to make foods bitter or gives them a “medicinal” taste if too much is added. One teaspoonful gives a perfect amount of almond flavor to this recipe.
Oh,thankyouthankyouthankyou!
This cake is so good… warm and comforting. Just the thing for winter. (It’s so nice to have Emily in our family now, especially with this recipe in her dowry.)
You are welcome! Can you believe how ridiculously simple and good this cake is?
I’m glad to have Emily as a niece, AND that she had the good sense to marry Hugh.
Thank you for chronicling this family favorite. Each year I think I’m going to cut back on my baking but…there are so many people that we are grateful for in our lives & I just need to let them know at Christmas time. So this year the count was 52 batches. Just so everyone knows, if you double the recipe it fits perfectly in a 9×13 and cut then be cut in squares–perfect for shipping to newlyweds who now can make their own because of their Aunt’s blog!
You had me at almond. This looks amazing!
I made this last year for our Christmas smorgasbord. It is easy and so delicious…. a keeper! Thank you for posting.
Brigget, thanks for letting me know that you like this recipe. I am getting so hungry for Swedish Almond Cake! I think I’ll make several batches this weekend!
Can I use all purpose four in this recipe?
Yes, all-purpose flour.
I made several batches, used the slivered almonds, and almond extract from http://www.atlanticspice.com It was delicious, all my friends are asking for the recipe. Sigh, and I was going to save the recipe for Christmas… Thank-you ever so much.
So good! I ate the whole thing by myself and I’ll be baking another this week. So good!!!!
this came together easily, pantry friendly, delish! a keeper for sure, ty so much for sharing:)
Yay! I’m so glad you liked it.
Just wondering if I can substitute the all purpose flour for almond flour instead.?
Hi Yasmine. I have never experimented with almond flour in this recipe. However, I found a recipe at the blog “Outside Oslo”, by blogger Daytona Strong, which seems to have a good substitute recipe using almond flour. Her almond cake looks beautiful and although it calls for using lingonberries, I imagine that you could skip them. Here is the link for Daytona’s gluten-free Lingonberry-Studded Almond Cake.
Is the almond extract only 1 teaspoon? It seems like it would need slightly more. Just want to confirm before making it. Thanks!
April, yes. Just one teaspoon. Almond extract can be really strong and will often add an unpleasant, bitter taste if too much is added. (Ask me how I know.) For some reason, it doesn’t work like vanilla extract where a little more is great. Take it from me, don’t ever “splash in” a little extra almond extract.
I just made this and it is delicious! The inside is still doughy or pasty is that the way it’s suppose to be?
I am so easily influenced! I saw your post 15 minutes ago and the cake is LITERALLY baking in my oven right now! I adore almond extract flavored anything, and this recipe is so quick and easy! I think I may cut them into diamond shapes and add them to my Christmas cookie plates this year 🙂
Haha! You shall be well rewarded! The diamond shape sounds like a great idea for a cookie plate.
This recipe is similar to one I use for Swedish Apple Pie. Melt this crust over a pie plate of sliced apples and bake for an hour. absolutely delish!
one cup flour and sugar, one stick room temp butter and one egg. Mix all by spoon and drop spoonfuls over sliced apples in buttered pie plate. Top it all off with almonds or walnuts and bake for an hour.
Try it; you’ll have another variation of this wonderful Swedish Almond Cake/Pie!
Thanks for sharing!
WOW! Definitely trying this one Joan. Thanks for sharing!
Hello, any tips for using a tart pan.
This will work fine in a tart pan. No changes need to be made to the recipe. Be sure to butter the pan well, getting into all of the nooks and crannies. 🙂 The only potential problem may be in removing the first piece of cake because of the straight sides of a tart pan.
Thanks for the recipe. It turned out great. How do you store the cake?
Hi Eva. I am glad that the recipe worked out well for you. For storage, simply cover with plastic wrap; no need to refrigerate.
I have a question, when you mix everything together, will the batter be lumpy from the butter not completely blended in or will it be completely smooth? I’m anxious to try this.
Hi Michelle. The dry ingredients will be lumpy after the butter is added. It will continue to be somewhat lumpy when the wets and the drys are stirred together. Small lumps are okay, you just don’t want any big lumps. The batter is relatively thick and rustic. This really is a very non-fussy recipe, no special skills required. 🙂
Hi Terri! I just made this almond “cake” last night for my friends who loves almond flavored sweets and they LOVED it! We were laughing because, like you said, it really isn’t a cake texture, it’s more dense and chewy but that’s why it was SO GOOD! And easy too. I added some drizzled icing (milk, lemon juice, powdered sugar) and it was beautiful. Thanks for sharing!
This is so good and super easy. Five minutes of mixing and it’s in the oven. I’ve made several varieties the past few weeks — almond, maple, lemon, orange. Almond is still my favorite. Hubby loves the one I made with lemon zest. Awesome recipe, thanks!
I have this Almond cake in the oven now. Doubled it like your sister in law and hope it comes out good. Anticipation!
I’m making another one this morning! Already made several batches of the almond cake and also tried lemon with lemon glaze and chocolate with cocoa and chocolate chips for the family holiday treats. This cake is divine! Thank you 🙂
Those sound like great additions. I’ll have to give them a try! This is such a basic, flexible recipe that it is easily adaptable. I bet the lemon is divine.
Can I cut the sugar to 3/4 cup?
Not in this recipe.
Thanks for sharing this recipe. I made it today and my son loves it! Will definitely make again.
Hi….I made this yesterday….I was having problems with this recipe when it was baking & discovered it is my oven. Well, I had it in & out of the oven so many times…put tin foil over the top so it wouldn’t brown too much. I finally took out of the oven to let it cool slightly…is the buttery egg flour supposed to be soft in the inside? It didn’t have a cake like texture. It tastes good but I was just wondering about how it is supposed to look. Can doneness be checked by a toothpick? Or just lightly browned around the edges only way to go. Please reply as I want to make another one.
Although this is referred to as a “cake”, it does not have a cake-like texture. It is supposed to be soft in the middle and dense. The edges tend to be crispy with the rest of the “cake” getting softer and softer as you move towards the middle. The middle is almost gooey, but not raw.
Can I use rice flour instead of regular flour?
No, rice flour will not work. You might try almond flour as is used in this recipe for Lingonberry Studded Almond Cake at the Outside Oslo blog by Daytona Strong.