Cakes made from ground almonds instead of the more common flour are always fantastically moist, and this traditional Portuguese recipe is deliciously dense. Lightened in flavour with a touch of lemon and cinnamon, serve as is or with whipped cream and preserves. It also happens to be gluten-free.
Preheat an oven to 170°C/gas mark 3 and grease a 10-inch cake tin with butter. Line the bottom of the tin with baking paper, then grease the paper with a little extra butter. Dust the pan with flour and tap out the excess
2
Place the butter and ground almonds into a food processor and pulse until combined
3
Whisk the egg yolks and 200g of the caster sugar together until light and fluffy (this will take around 5 minutes in a stand mixer; slightly longer for an electric or handheld whisk). Add the lemon zest, salt and cinnamon and mix until incorporated, then fold the almond and butter mixture into the egg yolks with a spatula. Set aside
4
In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until foamy, then whisk in the remaining 50g of sugar until the whites form glossy medium peaks. Add one-third of the egg whites into the almond mixture and stir to lighten, then fold in another third of the whites, keeping as much air in the whites as possible. Finally, add the remainder of the egg whites, incorporating gently until there are no streaks of white visible
5
Smooth the cake batter into the prepared cake tin and smooth the top. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the cake turns golden brown and begins to pull away from the sides of the tin
6
Transfer to a rack and leave to rest for 5 minutes before releasing the cake from the tin. Leave to cool completely, then scatter with flaked almonds and dust with icing sugar before serving. The centre of the cake will collapse a little as it cools, but this is perfectly normal
Casa do Frango is a London-based Portuguese restaurant specialising in authentic piri-piri chicken and dishes from the Algarve, with locations in London Bridge and Shoreditch.
