This Burnt Almond Cake tastes just like your favorite bakery’s burnt almond cake! It features fluffy almond cake, almond pastry cream, and almond frosting, covered in candied almond slices.
The city where I grew up, San Jose, doesn’t have a nationally known signature dish. It’s more suburban sprawl than cutting-edge culinary destination. However, there are certain foods that I will always associate with San Jose. During high school I practically lived on falafels from Falafel Drive-In, and to this day I swear their spicy falafels and banana shakes are the best I’ve ever tasted.
In the sweet realm, I can’t talk about San Jose without talking about burnt almond cake, made famous by Dick’s Bakery and Peter’s Bakery.
People tend to divide into two camps—you’re either on Dick’s side, or Peter’s side. There’s no equivocating, and there’s no neutral territory. For myself, I’m a Peter’s Bakery girl. This small hole-in-the-wall bakery was near my house, and I actually had my wedding cake made there, so of course I stay loyal, and would defend the superiority of Peter’s burnt almond cake over Dick’s any day of the week.
I haven’t tasted or thought about burnt almond cake in years, but I recently read something that referenced a different almond cake recipe, and suddenly I couldn’t stop thinking about the cake that reminds me so much of my childhood. I had to make one myself.
If you’re not familiar with burnt almond cake, you may wonder what all the fuss is about. (And also why anyone sane would put the word “burnt” in a cake title in the first place.) Put simply, it’s a fluffy white cake filled with almond pastry cream, frosted with buttercream, and coated with a thick layer of caramelized almonds. My version has almond flavor in every single component, so if you’re an almond fan who’s tired of vanilla or chocolate (or passion fruit!) having all the fun, allow me to introduce you to your new love.
Just to be clear, this is my version of a burnt almond cake, not a recreation of the bakery ones. (I feel like I need this disclaimer so that crazed Dick’s and Peter’s fans don’t track me down chanting “Not the same! Not the same!”) It’s been ages since I’ve tasted the real thing, and I don’t remember the details well enough to be confident of getting things right.
That doesn’t mean that it’s not AWESOME, though. The almond-flavored white cake is moistened by both an almond simple syrup and the creamy almond pastry cream layers. The buttercream is one of those wacky flour-based ones (newly obsessed with them) that has the light texture and flavor of whipped cream but the stability of buttercream. And the homemade caramelized almonds are the crowing touch, adding a great crunch, a bit of chew, and a whole lot of flavor from the deep, darkly caramelized toasted nuts.
No, it’s not the cake of my childhood—but at the risk of boasting, I think it’s even better. And the fact that I can make it in my own kitchen any time I want? That’s the best part of all.
💛More Almond Desserts to Try
- Raspberry Almond Chocolate Chunk Cookies
- Cranberry Curd Almond Cake
- Raspberry Rhubarb Almond BarsPersimmon Almond Rosette Tarts
- Chocolate Raspberry Almond Truffle Tart
- Raspberry Almond Spiral Cake
Strawberries and Cream Layer Cake
Blueberry Layer Cake
Burnt Almond Cake
Ingredients
For the Almond Cake:
- ⅔ cup large egg whites, (from approximately 4-5 large eggs)
- 1 cup milk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 10.5 oz cake flour, (3 cups)
- 10.5 oz granulated sugar, (1 ½ cups)
- 4 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 6 oz unsalted butter, at room temperature
For the Simple Syrup:
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp amaretto, or 1 tsp almond extract
For the Almond Pastry Cream:
- 1 tsp unflavored powdered gelatin
- 1 tbsp cold water
- 4 large egg yolks
- 1 large egg
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 cups milk
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 3 tbsp powdered sugar
For the Almond Buttercream:
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups milk
- 12 oz unsalted butter
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, I used superfine so it dissolved quickly
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp almond extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
For the Caramelized Almonds:
- 6 oz sliced almonds, (1 1/2 cups)
- 2 tbsp water
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
Instructions
To Make the Almond Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line two 9” cake pans with parchment, and spray them with nonstick cooking spray.
- In a small bowl whisk together the egg whites, 1/4 cup milk, and vanilla and almond extracts. Set aside for now.
- In the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds to mix and sift the ingredients. Add the softened butter and the remaining 3/4 cup milk to the bowl, and mix on low speed until the flour is moistened. Raise the speed to medium and beat for 90 seconds.
- Stop the mixer and scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl. Add the egg white mixture in 3 parts, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl once more. Divide the batter evenly between the pans.
- Bake at 350 for about 25 minutes, until the tops spring back lightly when pressed. Let the cakes cool for 15 minutes, then gently invert them out of the pans, invert them again until they’re right-side up, and let them cool completely on a wire rack.
To Make the Simple Syrup:
- Combine the water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir them together until the sugar dissolves, and heat the sugar syrup until it just starts to boil. Remove it from the heat and let it cool to room temperature. Stir in the amaretto or almond extract.
To Make the Almond Pastry Cream:
- Combine the gelatin and cold water in a small bowl and set aside for 5 minutes to let the gelatin absorb the water. Once absorbed, microwave the bowl for 10-15 seconds, until the gelatin is liquid. Set aside for now.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the yolks, egg, cornstarch, and 1/4 cup of sugar. In a medium saucepan, combine the milk, remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and salt. Heat the milk over a medium burner until it just starts to boil. Start whisking the egg mixture, and while you’re whisking, drizzle a little hot milk into the eggs. Continue to whisk and drizzle until you’ve added about half of the milk. Switch to whisking the milk, then pour the eggs into the milk mixture while whisking.
- Return the pan to the burner and heat the cream, whisking constantly. Use a rubber spatula to periodically scrape the bottom of the pan so it doesn’t scorch. Cook until the pastry cream thickens and starts a very gently bubbling, then cook for about 2 minutes longer. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the liquid gelatin, vanilla extract, almond extract, and butter.
- Pour the cream through a wire mesh strainer into a bowl. It will be somewhat thick, so use a spatula to help work it through, straining out any clumps of egg that have developed. Press a layer of cling wrap directly on top of the pastry cream, and refrigerate until cold and firm, at least 2 hours. (To speed the cooling process, the cream can be spread onto a baking sheet and put in the freezer for 15-20 minutes, but don’t forget it in the freezer!)
- Right before you’re ready to use the pastry cream in the cake, whip the heavy cream and powdered sugar together until it forms firm peaks. Gently fold together the pastry cream and whipped cream together.
To Make the Almond Buttercream:
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour and milk. Pour it through a fine wire mesh strainer into a medium saucepan, straining out any flour clumps. Heat the flour mixture over medium heat, whisking constantly, until it thickens. It will go from being a thin liquid to being a very thick paste. It should have the consistency of a very thick pudding when you’re done. Remove the pan from the heat, and let the flour mixture cool completely. To speed this process, I like the fill my sink with an inch or two of cold water, and submerge the bottom of the pan in the water, making sure to not get any in the pan. Stir occasionally while the mixture cools.
- Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a large stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat the butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until very light and fluffy and no longer gritty, about 5-7 minutes.
- Once the flour mixture is no longer warm at all, and the butter/sugar is light and fluffy, add the flour to the mixing bowl, along with the vanilla extract, almond extract, and salt. Whip together for 2-3 minutes until well-combined, light, and fluffy. If it seems to separate continue to beat it until it comes back together.
To Make the Caramelized Almonds:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F. Cover a baking sheet with foil and spray it with nonstick spray. Place the nuts on the baking sheet and toast them in the oven while you prepare the caramel.
- Combine the water, sugar, lemon juice, and salt in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir until the water dissolves and the mixture comes to a boil. Insert a candy thermometer and boil the sugar until it starts to turn a golden brown and reads between 310-325 on the thermometer.
- Remove the pan from the heat, and add the hot nuts from the oven. Stir until the nuts are coated with caramel. Add the butter and stir, then pour the nuts out onto the foil-lined baking sheet. Use a spatula to spread them into a thin layer without many nuts overlapping.
- Let the nuts cool completely, then break them apart. If they’re in large chunks, chop them coarsely.
To Assemble:
- Using a large serrated knife, cut each cake layer in half. Place one layer on a cake cardboard (or your serving plate) and use a pastry brush to brush it generously with the simple syrup.
- Scoop some buttercream into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip. Pipe a ring of buttercream all along the edge of the cake round to act as a barrier and hold in the filling. Scoop 1/3 of the pastry cream onto the cake, and spread it in an even layer until it covers the cake and reaches the buttercream ring. Top the cake round with a second round, and repeat the process of brushing it with simple syrup, piping a ring of buttercream, and spreading the pastry cream in the center.
- Repeat with the remaining layers, until you have a 4-layer cake with 3 layers of buttercream. Spread buttercream along the sides and top of the cake. It doesn’t have to be super-smooth since most of the surface will be covered with almonds.
- Press caramelized almonds into the sides of the cake. This is easiest if you use a cardboard cake round—hold the cake in one hand, over the baking sheet full of almonds, and use the other to press almonds into the sides, letting the excess fall back onto the sheet.
- Fit a pastry bag with a large star tip and pipe rosettes along the top of the cake. Decorate them with more caramelized almonds, if desired. The almonds will start to get sticky after about a day, so for optimal texture enjoy it on the day it’s made, but the flavor is still wonderful several days after.
Recipe Notes
Measuring Tips
Our recipes are developed using weight measurements, and we highly recommend using a kitchen scale for baking whenever possible. However, if you prefer to use cups, volume measurements are provided as well. PLEASE NOTE: the adage “8 oz = 1 cup” is NOT true when speaking about weight, so don’t be concerned if the measurements don’t fit this formula.
Want to learn more about baking measurements and conversion?
very delicious indeed… great recipy
Thank you for all of the amazing nut-based dessert recipes. You are so right that chocolate and vanilla tend to steal the limelight…and I love me some almond and pistachio flavored treats!
High-five for a fellow nut lover!
Hi Elizabeth, I just came across your recipe for burnt almond cake. since I am from San Jose, still live in West San Jose and I am having burnt almond cake withdrawls..Dick’s Bakery had a fire recently and had to shut down for a while ! Peter’s is way out of my way so I thought I would just make my own since I dont want to drive all the way to that side of town….thank you for the recipe. I am going to try it.
Take care.
Claudia Morales,
I too just found out that my FAVORITE bakery, Dick’s, and their AMAZING burnt almond cake, burned down in May. I now live in Seattle, but I lived in Cambrian in San Jose for years and their cake was always my bday cake of choice. Friends just visited me last weekend and I was chiding them about not bringing me a cake and they told me the bad news. Now I am OBSESSED with finding a clone recipe! lol. I hope this one is close!!! Let me know what you think when you make it. I haven’t had it in over a decade…oh but I think my taste buds will remember….
Hello, Iam from San Jose too, greww up in the west side and east side so I like both Dicks and Petes and think they taste the same..I really miss this came and often want to re-create it..maybe now I can.. San Jose had the best cakes..I miss California;)
Your cake looks so stunning! I’ve never heard of burnt almond cake before, but I really want to try it now!
This cake looks wonderful, but did you mean to put 11 1/2 teaspoons almond extract in the cake? I’m thinking you meant 1 1/2 teaspoons?
Thank you, thank you! I love almond and all, but 11 teaspoons would be disgusting. So glad you caught my mistake!
Oh Angela! You might be seeing double my recipe says 1 1/2 tsp.
Sounds amazing Elizabeth and I bet your cake is way better than Peter’s and Dick’s! My husband loves almond flavored things so I will have to try making this….his birthday is coming up!
That totally sounds like my kind of cake! LOVE almond cream. Looks completely gorgeous!
This cake is gorgeous!! This looks amazing. I absolutely need this in my life. I love all the almond components in every aspect of this cake.
This post has made my day! I too love burnt almond cake, although I have to admit that I fall in the Dick’s Bakery camp (since I grew up so close to their bakery). I’ve always thought about how I could recreate this cake at home, but never worked myself up to the task. Thanks so much for sharing your creation…I plan on making this for my parents (also huge burnt almond cake fans) and know that it will amaze them.
Heeeeey, fellow San Jose native! So exciting to find someone who remembers these cakes as well. (And we can totally still be friends, even if you’re rooting for the enemy.) What high school did you go to? (I was at Lincoln.) Please let me know what you think when you give it a try!
Hi, my grandma has been going to Dicks for their Burnt Almond Cake for over 60 years now. So it only seems fitting we have one at her memorial service next week, however, the people my mom has been working with at Dicks have not showed an ounce of customer service and have been a little rude; do you know of any other bakeries in the area that have Burnt Almond Cake and deliver as well? I contacted Peter’s but unfortunately they do not deliver.
Thanks
Hi Jenn, Thanks for the comment. I’m so sorry to hear about your grandmother, and I think having burnt almond cake at her memorial sounds lovely! Unfortunately I haven’t lived in San Jose for a decade now, and I’m not very familiar with the bakery scene there anymore. I hope you’re able to find something that works for you and your family! Best to you.
Hey guys,
I know it’s a year since the memorial service (hope your family is doing better after the loss) but I live in the Bay Area now and can recommend a great bakery that sells one of the best burnt almond cakes ever. I hadn’t had a burnt almond cake until I came to the Bay Area and I can vouch for it being the best out-of-the-ordinary cake I have EVER had (I am usually a chocolate anything freak).
You can go to the La Patisserie bakery on Stevens Creek Boulevard. Boy! That cake is to die for. 🙂
Hope this information helps fellow San Jose burnt-almond-cake fans! 😀
Have a great day!
While I’ve never had a “burnt” almond cake, wedding cakes down here are almond flavored and are my ABSOLUTE favorite.
(I always assumed the whole world had almond flavored wedding cakes until a friend of my got married and had to bring a taste somewhere so I’m thoroughly confused…)
BUT I’m so excited to see an almond cake recipe that doesn’t start with a white cake mix and then get doctored up. I LOVE the idea of using an almond simple syrup and an almond pastry cream. This looks gorgeous and delicious Elizabeth!!
I didn’t realize almond wedding cakes were commonly a “thing”! Can’t argue with that custom, though, since almond cakes are pretty darn delicious. I’m anti-cake mix and try to avoid them when possible, for sure!
It sounds as if these two bakeries should have a reality tv show centered around their rivalry. This Burn Almond Cake is gorgeous!
Best idea ever! Let’s volunteer to be judges so we can taste the dishes in the bake-off. 🙂