EASY ALMOND CAKE

© Nigella Lawson website

This comes from Nigella Lawson's wonderful book How to be a Domestic Goddess which is cramful of lovely cakes, puddings, pies and more. It is exactly as the title implies and is a handy standby if you're stuck for a pudding. It looks very elegant and can be tarted up with fruit (raspberries, strawberries and/or blueberries work particularly well), ice cream or whipped cream. The great thing about this cake is that, apart from the marzipan, it's made from things you are likely to have in your cupboard all the time. I was pondering what to make for pudding tomorrow evening when I found half a block of marzipan in the fridge, leftover from my Christmas Stollen.

Nigella's cook's note: take the marzipan out of the fridge ahead of making the cake, otherwise it won't "ooze into the cake batter".  The quantities can be doubled or halved easily: just adjust the cake tin size to suit the quantity.




250g softened unsalted butter
250g softened marzipan (yellow or natural coloured)
150g caster sugar
¼ tsp almond essence
¼ tsp vanilla essence
6 large eggs
150g self-raising flour

You will also need a 25cm springform pan or, if you have one, a patterned ring mould, buttered and floured.

Oven 170℃

Makes about 12 slices

Chop the butter and marzipan and then put in the food-processor with the sugar and whizz until well combined and smooth. Add the almond and vanilla essence, and break the eggs into the mixture, one at a time. Add the flour. Tip the mixture into the prepared pan and cook for 50 minutes, but check after 40. Dust with icing sugar and garnish with fresh, if using. Serve with creme fraiche, ice-cream, whipped cream, mascarpone....