Almond Torte

Dessert, my friends, is where it's at.

This really shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone with tastebuds.

This recipe comes from the genius of Alice Waters, chef extraordinaire of Chez Panisse. We have my mom to thank for this one as she told me about this cake after having it a couple of times. I am thrilled to call it a new staple! Every home chef needs go-to recipes and this is my new dessert of choice. 

Serve this cake topped with a dusting of powdered sugar, fresh berries, and/or vanilla ice cream.

Or eat it for breakfast. It's versatile. 

Almond Torte

     from Alice Waters

     yields 1 9-inch cake - use a springform pan

Ingredients

1 cup cake flour

1½ tsp baking soda

pinch of salt

1¼ cups sugar

7 oz. almond paste, at room temp

10 oz. butter, at room temp

1 tsp vanilla

6 eggs, at room temp

powdered sugar for dusting

Directions

Preheat oven to 325°F.
Grease and line a 9 inch springform pan, set aside.
In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In another bowl, combine the almond paste and sugar until the almond paste is in very small pieces. 

Using a standing mixer, beat the unsalted butter until light.

Add the almond and sugar mixture to the butter and cream together until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla extract and the eggs, one at a time. Scrape down sides of the bowl making sure everything is thoroughly combined.

Gradually add in the flour mixture until just combined.

Pour into the prepared cake pan and bake for one hour, 

until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before serving.

The most perfect slicing you'll ever encounter.

Serve with powdered sugar on the top or with whipped cream. You don't need much, just a tad. The cake is the start of this show.

Enjoy!

Chocolately Almond Biscotti

Bite-sized and crispy, perfect for dunking, biscotti and coffee are a match made in heaven. If you are a fan of teatime, Italian goodies, or sweets in general, this recipe is for you.

While I was in Italy I found myself drooling outside the windows of cute, little bakeries like this one. 

Those Italians... they're doing it right.

Chocolately Almond Biscotti

     adapted from Cooking Light, March 2009

Ingredients

9.5 oz. flour, about 2 cups

2 tbsp flax seed

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

⅓ cup sugar

⅓ cup packed dark brown sugar

2 egg whites

1 egg

1 tsp Brandy

½ tsp vanilla

⅔ cup dark chocolate chips

⅔ cup unsalted almonds, I used sliced almonds

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Weigh and measure out the flour. Combine flour, flax seed, soda, and salt in a bowl, stirring with a whisk. In the bowl of a standing mixer combine sugars, egg whites, and egg. Beat on high speed for 2 minutes then add in the Brandy and vanilla.

Add flour mixture to egg mixture, stirring until just combined. Fold in chocolate and almonds. 

Divide dough into 3 equal portions - The dough will be sticky. Roll each portion into a 6-inch-long roll on a cookie sheet. Bake at 350° for 28 minutes.

Remove from cookie sheet, cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Cut rolls into ½-inch slices. 

Fun Fact: Biscotti means twice-cooked bread.

Arrange sliced biscotti on the cookie sheet and return to the oven. Reduce temperature to 325° and bake 7 minutes on each side. Cool on wire rack before serving.

Enjoy!