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Lemon Almond Cake

Here's an easy, casual cake, which can add a special touch to a nice, relaxed evening with friends. For me, the recipe really worked when our friend, D. said that it reminded him of his childhood in Spain.

Here's the original recipe, but I made a whole bunch of tweaks:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/flourless-lemon-almond-cake-385

I added some flour, baking powder and almond extract, got rid of the cinnamon and added a lemon glaze and sliced almonds. Here's what I did:

Preheat oven to 375. Butter and flour one 9 inch cake pan. Separate 4 eggs. Beat the yolks with a pinch of salt, and 2 Tbsp sugar until pale. Add the zest of about 4 lemons, a small dash of almond extract (~1/2 tsp), 1 1/3 cup almond flour,  2 Tbsp flour, and 1/4 tsp baking powder. Remove this thick paste (almost dough-like consistency) in another container. Clean the mixer bowl and whisk really well. Beat the egg whites and 1/8 tsp cream of tarter until soft peak forms. Add about 5 Tbsp sugar and beat until stiff peaks. Mix about 1/3 of the whites with the yolk and almond mixture to lighten it up. Now fold it back into the whites gently and transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake in the 375 oven for about 25 mins (cake tester comes out clean). Cool on a wire rack, after a few minutes, remove from the pan and cool further.

Mix the juice of one lemon with about 1 cup of confectioner's sugar to get a thick glaze consistency. While the cake is still warm, transfer it to the serving plate with the bottom of the cake on top. Spread the glaze evenly on the top and let drip on the sides (some of the glaze will get absorbed by the cake). Once it cools a bit further, sprinkle sliced almonds all over the top, so they stick to the glaze. Cool completely and serve at room temperature.


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