Apricot Torte
Source: Orangette
Cake:
1/3 cup finely ground blanched almonds
2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
Pinch of salt
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
Topping:
6 ripe apricots, halved and pitted
1-2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
Directions
Notes:
I've made this a few times and this time I use plain ol' measuring cups it turned out great, even better than using converted gram measurements. J gives it the thumbs up. I think this cake would taste better with plums, as in the original recipe, but it's great to use up apricots.
My mom has made this and it's essential to keep pulsing the almonds until they are fine or you will get little almond bits in the cake (don't be afraid of grinding it too much). Also, it's essential to sprinkle sugar on the apricots or they are too tart. Goes wonderfully with vanilla ice cream.
Cake:
1/3 cup finely ground blanched almonds
2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
Pinch of salt
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
Topping:
6 ripe apricots, halved and pitted
1-2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
Directions
- Blanch ¼ cup of almonds by pouring about 1 cup of hot water over the almonds for 1 minute then rinsing with hot water. Peel the skins off the almonds then place into the bowl of a food processor, and pulse until you have a fine, sandy powder with no large lumps or bits.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the ground almonds, flour, baking powder, and salt.
- In the bowl of stand mixer, beat the butter with the sugar until light and fluffy, scraping down the sides as needed.
- Add the dry ingredients and the eggs and beat to combine, scraping down the bowl as needed. Do not overmix. The batter will be pale yellow and very thick.
- Pour and scrape the batter into a 9-inch pan, and use a rubber spatula to spread it evenly. Arrange the apricots cut-side-up on top of the batter, and sprinkle them with 1-2 Tbsp sugar. You can also sprinkle a little over the rest of the batter.
- Slide the pan into the oven, and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
Notes:
I've made this a few times and this time I use plain ol' measuring cups it turned out great, even better than using converted gram measurements. J gives it the thumbs up. I think this cake would taste better with plums, as in the original recipe, but it's great to use up apricots.
My mom has made this and it's essential to keep pulsing the almonds until they are fine or you will get little almond bits in the cake (don't be afraid of grinding it too much). Also, it's essential to sprinkle sugar on the apricots or they are too tart. Goes wonderfully with vanilla ice cream.