Almond Cake With Saffron and Honey
- Total Time
- 2 hours
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- ½cup/115 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), melted, plus more for greasing the pan
- ½cup/90 grams fine semolina flour
- ¾cup/150 grams granulated sugar
- 1cup/95 grams finely ground blanched almonds, or substitute almond meal
- 1½teaspoons baking powder
- Pinch of kosher salt
- 4eggs, beaten
- Zest of 1 orange
- Zest of 1 lemon
- ½teaspoon almond extract
- 1cup/240 milliliters orange juice
- ¾cup/150 grams granulated sugar
- 2tablespoons honey
- 6whole cloves
- 6cardamom pods
- 1(1-inch) piece cinnamon stick
- Pinch of crumbled saffron (optional)
- 12dried apricots, softened in boiling water and drained
For the Cake
For the Syrup
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)
375 calories; 17 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 53 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 42 grams sugars; 7 grams protein; 94 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10-inch diameter cake pan and line with parchment paper.
- Step 2
In a large bowl, mix together the semolina, sugar, almonds, baking powder and salt. Whisk in eggs and melted butter. Add the orange and lemon zests and almond extract and beat well. Pour into prepared pan.
- Step 3
Bake for about 45 minutes, until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Invert onto a wire rack and let cool.
- Step 4
As cake cools, make the syrup: Put orange juice, sugar, honey, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, saffron and apricots in a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve sugar, and then simmer gently for about 5 minutes. Set aside. Transfer cake to a serving plate. Use a skewer to poke holes all over and slowly pour syrup evenly over cake. Once the syrup has cooled slightly, arrange the spices and apricots on top of the cake to your liking. Leave cake for at least an hour to fully absorb syrup, or, if possible, wrap and store in a cool place (don’t refrigerate) for up to 5 days.
Private Notes
Comments
This similar to another Turkish classic, revani. Having made revani several times, I would use a springform pan. I would plan on leaving the warm cake in the pan and slowly pour the syrup over it in small amounts until it is saturated. I would serve it from the base of the springform pan as the top would be marred by the inverting process to remove the base. We’ll be making this one in a week or two.
Really lovely. We scattered pomegranate over the top rather than the apricots and served with vanilla ice cream. The saffron was a brilliant addition to the orange/almond/honey.
Not just lovely but superbly delicious. Because a guest is gluten-free, I replaced the semolina with more almond flour, and liked the result so much I'll do it again that way. Also I used just 1/2 cup sugar in the cake, knowing that plenty of sweetness was coming via the syrup. But, to my surprise, the end result was not overly sweet. All guests had seconds; one had thirds.
I swapped the orange juice for pear juice and it turned out really good! I also added extra saffron and cardamom to boost the flavor. I’m curious if using ultra-fine almond flour instead of ground almonds would have made the cake a bit less flat.
I love this recipe, but I always have to check the oven well ahead of tge suggested baking time. It is always done before 30 minutes.
Made a half of the size and the husband ate the whole thing and demanded another one for the next day. Dangerously good!