We made a Cranberry & Orange Almond Cake back in December, and it’s baaaack, this time starring apples and blueberries. This Apple & Blueberry Almond Cake has also become a household favorite, so much so, that it was my DH’s birthday cake wish. We are so different in our tastes - I see this (albeit delicious) cake more as a health food - it’s gluten-free, has fruit and nuts in it, and not a lot of sugar. My personal choice would have been more along the lines of a chocolate layer cake with undulating layers of chocolate frosting (hint, hint) but my day shall come, and with it, the outrageous chocolate cake! Anyway, given that we’re in this “situation” with the virus ’n all, and I am limiting food shops to once a week, I had to go with what I had on hand. Frozen blueberries are thankfully abundant in this house, as are apples. A hit of lemon zest to wake up those taste buds and, voila, another delicious, light and fluffy cake.
If you don’t have almond flour but you have almonds, remove the skins by soaking them in freshly boiled water for a few minutes. The skins will pop right off! Then dry them and blitz them in the blender until it reaches the consistency of flour. You could also use almond meal, made of ground up almonds with the skin, but this will give you a slightly heavier consistency.
Switch this up however you like, with whatever fruit you have available. Once you have the batter down, you can make it yours! Tag us #gatherandbe if you make it!
xoxo Kirsty
Ingredients
4 eggs, separated, preferably at room temperature
1/2 cup (95g) sugar
1-1/2 cups (145g) blanched almond flour
zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
a pinch of salt
3/4 cup (75g) blueberries, fresh or frozen
2 apples, peeled, cored and sliced into wedges (12-16 per apple)
2 tablespoons apricot or orange jam
Preheat the oven to 350F (180C). Lightly grease and line a 9”/ 23cm cake pan (a springform pan is ideal) with parchment paper.
Beat the egg yolks and sugar with an electric mixer on high until it turns pale yellow and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
Fold in the almond flour and lemon zest. The mixture will seem very stiff but don’t worry, it will loosen up once you add the egg whites.
Next, beat the egg whites. Make sure to clean the beaters well if you used the same ones to beat the egg yolks, as fat will prevent the whites from stiffening. Beat the egg whites on high speed with a pinch of salt in a very clean bowl until stiff peaks hold when you lift the beaters from the mixture.
Using a metal spoon, fold a heaping spoon of the egg whites carefully into the rest of the batter. When it’s incorporated, fold in the rest of the egg whites and the blueberries.
Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake tin and arrange the apple slices on top. Bake for 30 minutes, until the cake bounces back in the middle when lightly touched. Remove the cake from the oven. Warm the jam in the microwave for 10 seconds until it becomes a little more liquid. Brush the jam onto the apple slices whilst the cake is still warm. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before removing the cake from the pan.