Recipe: Almond Cake

10-12 servings

This recipe is adapted from the excellent recipe that we made almost weekly at Chez Panisse.

Recently I was fortunate to dine at Gramercy Tavern in New York City, where I met pastry chef Claudia Fleming, who is working on a book of her own desserts. Although those vertical fantasy desserts appear at just about every trendy restaurant, Claudia bucks the trend by creating desserts that are fantasies of flavors and textures. I had a great Rhubarb and Strawberry Soup, and tiny tastes of other desserts, ending up with a plate of exquisite hand-dipped chocolates.

The bar area of the restaurant features a more casual menu with desserts and one of the most popular is Lindsey's Almond Cake.

So now that summer fruits are cascading upon us; plums, peaches, cherries and berries, this Almond Cake should become a part of your repertoire as it has become part of mine. I strongly recommend getting the almond paste from Kitchen Glamor (http://www.kitchenglamor.com) which is made in Brooklyn by American Almond Products. It's better than what you can get in the supermarket, although most grocers do carry almond paste in the baking aisle. The Odense brand, which comes in a foil-wrapped tube, is reliably good.

This cake is particularly tasty with the Plum and Raspberry Compote or the warm Blueberry Compote from Room For Dessert. Or try slicing some ripe, juicy peaches or nectarines, tossing them with a sprinkle of sugar and a few drops of kirsch and serving them alongside. For a speedy crème anglaise (if you want to cheat), melt down some good-quality vanilla ice cream in the refrigerator and serve it as a sauce!

1 1/3 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup almond paste (not marzipan)

10 ounces unsalted butter, at room temperature

6 large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and position the rack to the center of the oven. Line the bottom of a 9-inch cake pan with a round of parchment paper, or butter the pan and dust it lightly with flour, tapping out any excess.

2. With an electric mixer, beat together the sugar and almond paste until the paste is finely broken up (the sugar crystals helps break the paste into pieces-so don't add the butter yet!)

3. Now add the butter and beat for a few minutes until light and fluffy. In a separate bowl, or a measuring cup with a spout, stir together the eggs with a fork then dribble it into the batter as you beat. Add the vanilla.

4. Mix together the flour, baking powder and salt with a whisk. Stir the dry ingredients into the batter until just incorporated.

5. Transfer the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for about 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. The baking time may take a but longer due to the variation in different brands of almond paste.

Cool the cake on a rack before serving. This cake is extremely moist and will keep well for up to a week if well-wrapped.