Traditional Swedish Almond Cake

Make this easy Swedish Almond Cake for an easy and elegant cake. This traditional Scandinavian cake has a light and spongy texture and is delicious paired with powdered sugar or berries.

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One of the best ways to explore other cultures is through food. It is pretty difficult to travel right now, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy making and eating foods from around the world!

When it comes to making desserts from around the world I have a weakness for Scandinavian desserts. Treats like Norwegian bløtkake and cardamom cookies are staple desserts at my house. This Scandinavian almond cake is another favorite recipe!

Why You Will Love this Swedish Almond Cake

• This cake is very simple to make. There are no complicated techniques needed and it is a quick recipe.
• You don’t even need get out your mixer for this cake, it is easy to mix in a bowl.
• The Swedish almond cake has a delicious almond flavor throughout and more almonds on top.
• The texture of the cake is light and springy. This is not a heavy dense dessert.

Scandinavian Almond Cake Pan

This cake is traditionally baked in a special pan, called a Rehrucken or Almond Cake Loaf Pan. This pan is a skinny loaf pan with a rounded top that has indentations showing you where to cut each piece.

These pans are easy to find and not expensive. They are also fun for baking things like quick breads which look fancy when baked in the Rehrucken pan. But if you don’t want to buy a special pan for one recipe that is understandable.

If you double the recipe you can bake it in a standard bundt pan and get a similar consistency and effect. And as an added benefit you get twice as much cake!

You can find the classic recipe for this cake attached to most Rehrucken pans you buy. I made only minor changes to the basic recipe.

Ingredients

• Butter – I used salted butter, but unsalted would also work fine.
• White sugar – This is a sweet cake recipe which uses a lot of sugar. I decreased the amount of sugar in the recipe a little bit. Since I like to sprinkle powdered sugar on top it makes sense to use a little less sugar.
• Milk – I use 1% milk, but I don’t think changing that will have a large impact on the recipe.
• Egg
• Almond extract – This is the one ingredient you might not have in your pantry. But this is an almond cake, so you can’t really substitute vanilla extract in this case.
• Flour – Use white all purpose flour in the recipe.
• Baking powder

Step by Step Instructions

1. Mix

Whether you are using an almond cake pan or a bundt cake pan you need to spray it well with cooking oil. Even if it says it has a non-stick surface it still needs to be oiled!

Then melt the butter in the microwave. While it cools put the sugar, milk, egg and almond extract in a bowl and mix. Stir until everything is well mixed and smooth.

Add the flour and baking powder to the bowl and whisk until the flour is mixed in.

Then pour in the melted butter and mix again until everything is completely combined.

2. Bake

Fill the cake pan with the batter and bake it for 40-50 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

If you are using a bundt pan or another non Rehrucken pan the baking time might be affected. So check the cake at 40 minutes and keep checking every 5-10 minutes until it is done.

3. Finish

For best results put the cake pan on a rack and let it cool completely before you take it out of the almond cake pan. If you try to take it out while it is still warm the cake will likely crack.

When the cake is cool place it upside down on a serving platter and tap. The sides can be loosened with a silicone or wooden tool, but don’t use a knife or something metal as they will scratch the pan.

How to Serve

Dust powdered sugar over the top of the cake before serving to give it a pretty, snow covered look. Then add some more almonds on top of the cake.

The pre-sliced indentations make it easy to cut and serve. It is a very elegant cake and isn’t overly sweet, which makes it great for a brunch.

You could also top it with sprinkles, whipped cream, berries or other fruit. Because the cake is so spongy and moist it is very good topped with fruit since the juices soak in.

Make an Almond Glaze

For a sweeter finish you can also make a quick almond glaze by mixing 1 cup of powdered sugar with 1 Tablespoon of milk and 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract. Drizzle this glaze over the cake and let it harden.

How to Store

This cake keeps at room temperature for about 3 days. It also freezes very well. To freeze it store it in an airtight container for up to 3 months.

Find More Cake Recipes

• Mini Rum Cakes
• Christmas Bundt Cake
• Blueberry Upside Down Cake
• Chocolate Cherry Cake