PASTRY
1 1/2 cup flour
4 egg yolks
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 lb butter
FILLING
1/4 lb butter
1 cup chopped almonds
3/4 cup ground almonds
2/3 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/4 cup potato starch or cornstarch
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 pinch salt
Directions
FOR THE PASTRY: Combine pastry ingredients by hand or in a food
processor to form a soft dough. Do not overmix. Chill for 30 minutes.
Roll out and line an 11-or-12-inch pie or tart pan. Prick the base
and chill for 15-to-20 minutes. Preheat oven to 375F. FOR THE
FILLING: Heat 1/3 of the butter in a saute pan, add the chopped
almonds and saute over medium heat until browned. Cool. Melt the
remaining butter in a small saucepan. Cool. Mix the ground almonds
and sugar in a bowl and add the eggs one by one, beating after each
addition until the mixture is light and thick. Sift the potato or
corn starch with the baking powder and salt and fold into the almond
mixture. Fold in the melted butter. Do not overmix. Pour the mixture
into the tart shell and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the batter
begins to set. Quickly scatter the chopped almonds over the top in
one even layer. Return the tart to the oven and continue baking for
17-to-20 minutes or until the pastry is brown and the filling is firm.
Servings: 10 servings
Almond Cake Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Cake; Dessert; Nut
The History of Recipes
It is quite feasible to prove the history of recipes back into antiquity, at least as far as pharonic Egypt, and potentially, even further back. Interesting though that maybe, sadly, these old records were just simple pictorial, hieroglyphic or cunieform recipes for preparing meals.
Interestingly, the oldest recipe in existence, according to food historians is a series of tablets in Sumerian which describe the making of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making people feel exhilarated. Closer to modern times, there are two interesting books which were published in the fourteenth century : a book called `Forme of Cury`, and another named `Curye on Inglish`. Amusingly, they are not about the spicy food that we all know today, but rather accounts of the types of meals eaten by the rich and powerful of the time. During the succeeding few centuries, the wealthy families of the West competed with each other to serve up the most extravagent meals, and as a consequence, the best chefs and their collection of recipes could command a high salary. Even so, it was during the nineteenth century that cooking and recipe books really came of age. The Famous Mrs Beeton in the UK, and the equally well-known Fannie Farmer in the US, dedicated the best years of their lives to collecting, trying out, and writing down recipes that were common in the better off homes of the day. By the time we get to the twentieth century, cooking books were in high demand, mostly as a result of more people being able to read, people having increased leisure time and having more money to spend. |
We hope you enjoy this Almond Cake recipe.
