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Dessert

Almond Cream Cake

A sponge cake topped with a whipped almond cream.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 11 ingredients
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Why it works: Vanilla and almond match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,961 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓

Almond Cream Cake

Ingredients

Directions

The book gives no oven temperature. The 350°F (175°C) in the steps was added when the recipe was transcribed, as a starting point. The book gives no cooking times either; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.

Make the cake

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

  2. In a large bowl, cream together the powdered sugar and butter until smooth.

  3. Add the sweet milk and mix well.

  4. Fold in the beaten egg whites and vanilla extract.

  5. Sift together the flour and baking powder.

  6. Gradually add to the mixture, stirring until just combined.

  7. Pour batter into a greased cake pan.

  8. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Make the almond cream and finish

  1. Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form.

  2. Gradually stir in the powdered sugar and a few drops of vanilla extract.

  3. Fold in the chopped almonds.

  4. Once the cake has cooled, spread the almond cream on top.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Vanilla + almondtop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together3,961 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  2. Flour + almondtop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together8,673 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  3. Milk + vanillatop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together19,187 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).

  4. Butter + milktop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together81,283 recipes

    Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).

  5. Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together41,516 recipes

    Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Eggs
Whipped whites add lift and an airy, light crumb to the batter.
Butter
Creamed with sugar, it adds richness and a tender texture.
All-purpose flour
Provides the structure that holds the cake together as it bakes.
Baking powder
Releases gas during baking so the cake rises and becomes light.
Heavy cream
Whipped into the topping, it gives the almond cream a soft, moist body.
Blanched almonds
Chopped and folded into the cream, they add texture and nutty flavor.

The step that matters

Gradually add the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Once flour meets liquid, gluten begins to form. Overmixing toughens the cake and makes it dense, so stir only until no dry flour remains.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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