Meatless Luscious Fun - Almond Honey Cake - 081913

Almond Honey Cake - packed full of fresh fresh summer fruit, juicy berries or sweet jam. What's not to like? This is a recipe that has been so often requested in the past few weeks, I promised to pass it on as quickly as possible. Thus, this week's Meatless Monday blog post!

There's so much to say about this cake... You can make it for everyone...low sugar and gluten free. The almonds, packed with protein, balance out the sugar in the honey. And speaking of honey, make sure to buy local honey if you can find it. There's lots of research lately that shows local honey is good for those of us who suffer from allergies. Those wonderful bees are making honey from the same plants that cause us so much distress during runny nose seasons in the fall and spring. Just make sure to enjoy the honey year-round not just allergy season! If you want to learn more about this subject, here's a good article to check out: Honey for Allergies

Back to the cake...I think you'll love it, too. Not too sweet, it can even be a delicious breakfast bread - or for a "pick-me-up" in the afternoon, a small square topped with a handful of blueberries is just perfect. . What's even better is that it makes good cakes in round, square and cupcake pans. So instead of slicing it in half as I did with the lemon curd below - you can bake pretty cupcakes and top them with the summer's best fruit!

 Honey Almond Cake

1 ¾ Cup Almond Meal

4 large eggs, at room temperature, separated

1/2 Cup Honey

1 Tsp Vanilla

1/2 Tsp Baking Soda

1/2 Tsp Sea Salt

TOPPING*

2 TB Honey

1/4 Cup Sliced Almonds, toasted

Step One

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray and line a 9” springform pan. OR spray and line a round or square 9" pan OR spray a cupcake pan.

Step Two

Beat the 4 egg whites on medium speed until very foamy, white and doubled in volume, about the soft peak stage.

Step Three

Beat the 4 egg yolks, the 1/2 cup honey, vanilla, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until well combined. Add the ground almonds and beat on low until combined.

Step Four
Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the egg whites into the nut mixture until just combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

Step Five
Bake the cake until golden brown and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and gently remove the side ring. 

*To serve, brush the top of the cake with honey and sprinkle with sliced almonds OR top with summer berries OR slice in half and put jam or lemon curd and berries. Your choice - they are all good!