Rustic Almond Coffee Cake with Cranberries
This gorgeous cake is just as suited for a holiday table as it is for a Tuesday-morning coffee cake. It is super simple to get the dreamy texture of this cake, because the batter is made in a food processor, so the almond paste is blended smoothly. It yields a cake that is dense and tender at the same time. Try the variation with kirschwasser-soaked dried cherries or cranberries in place of the grapes.
Servings: 1 10-inch / 25cm cake
- 1 cup (120g) cake flour
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp kosher salt
- 7 oz (200g) almond paste, cut into small pieces, plus 4 oz (115g), cut into 1/4-inch (6mm) cubes See note
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (175ml) olive oil See note
- 1 tsp vanilla extract homemade vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 5 eggs at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups (240g) halved grapes (any seedless variety) Or halved cranberries or dried cherries
Topping
- 1/2 cup (60g) almond slices
- 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
- 1 tsp orange zest
- 4 drops orange blossom water
Preheat the oven to 325°F /175°C. Generously grease and flour a 10-inch / 25cm tube pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In a food processor, combine the pieces of almond paste (7 oz), sugar, olive oil, vanilla, almond extract, and orange zest and process until smooth. Add the eggs, one at a time, pulsing to combine after each egg.
Add one-third of the flour mixture to the oil mixture and pulse just until combined. Repeat with another one-third flour and then the final one-third. Using a spoon or rubber spatula, fold the chunks of almond paste (4 oz) and half of the grapes into the batter.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and top with the remaining grapes.
Topping
In a small bowl, combine the almonds, sugar, orange zest, and orange blossom water and rub together with your fingertips.
Sprinkle the topping over the batter and smooth with a spatula. Set the pan on a baking sheet.
Bake until the cake is golden and a tester comes out clean, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Let the cake in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and set onto a wire rack to cool completely before serving.
- The almond paste needs to be soft, or it won’t incorporate smoothly. If it is old and dried out, it will just stay in clumps.
- You can use any oil, but there is something so special about olive oil in this cake