Tart, tangy, and sweet. This Raspberry Almond cake is super moist, full of fruity flavor, and boasts a beautiful wildflower buttercream design.
The almond cake is moist, tender, and sturdy - all at the same time. Same goes for the raspberry buttercream: tangy, tart, and sweet.
Freeze dried raspberries give it a real raspberry flavor without being overly sweet (like when using raspberry jam). They are also responsible for the beautiful pink color.
Cream cheese was a natural addition to creating a tangy, not-too-sweet buttercream, but vinegar? I was skeptical at first, but it totally works. I’ll be adding a pinch of salt and a dribble of white vinegar to all my American Buttercream now.
The wildflower buttercream design was completely inspired by Alice and Rosa Cake Studio. I’ve been dreaming of the botanical bespoke cakes ever since I found them on Instagram. The stems are carved into the frosted cakes. The flowers are piped and painted on after. A splattering of edible gold paint finishes off the some-what bohemian vibe.
Recipe from Cake Portfolio, reposted with permission from the author
Recipe
Raspberry Almond Cake
Ingredients
Almond Cake
- 330 g all-purpose flour
- 160 g almond flour
- 1 ½ tablespoon baking powder
- 1 ¼ teaspoon salt
- 500 g granulated sugar
- 155 g unsalted butter room temperature
- 80 g vegetable or grapeseed oil
- 4 large eggs
- 1 large egg yolk
- 340 g milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
Raspberry Cream Cheese Buttercream
- 35 g freeze dried raspberries
- 226 g unsalted butter room temperature
- 160 g cream cheese room temperature
- 700 g confectioners' sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon white vinegar
- 50 g heavy cream
Instructions
Almond Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour three 8-inch cake pans and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add in the oil and mix until combined. Add in the eggs and egg yolk, one at a time - making sure each is incorporated before adding in the next. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add in half of the flour mixture. Mix until just incorporated. Stream in the milk, followed my the vanilla and almond extracts. Add in the remaining flour and mix until just combined.
- Divide the batter between the prepared pans. Bake until lightly golden on top and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.
- Cool the cakes on a wire rack for about 10 minutes before removing from their pans. Completely cool before frosting.
Raspberry Cream Cheese Buttercream
- Place the freeze dried raspberries in a food processor and grind to a powder. Sift out the seeds using a fine-mesh sieve and set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the raspberry powder, cream cheese, and butter. Turn the mix to low speed and mix until smooth.
- Slowly add in the sugar, salt, and vinegar and mix until combined. Add in half of the cream then increase the speed to medium. Continue to mix for another minute or two until the frosting is light and creamy. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. If the frosting is too thick to spread smoothly, add in the remaining cream and mix until combined.
Assembly
- Place one layer of cake on a cake board or serving dish. Place about 1 cup of buttercream on top and spread with an offset spatula until smooth. Top with the next layer of cake and repeat.
- Crumb coat the cake with the buttercream and chill for 15 minutes. Reserve about 1 cup of the buttercream, then fully frost the cake.
To Decorate
- Tint the remaining frosting various shades of pink, purple, and orange. I made a small batch of plain American Buttercream to tint green for the leaves.
- Using a scriber needle tool, toothpick, or other thin fondant sculpting tool carve flower stems and foliage by gently dragging the tip up the sides of the frosted cake.** Fill piping bags fitted with various star and petal tips with the tinted frosting. Pipe petal and flowers at the top of the engraved stems. Add green leaves to the stems. Finish by trimming some of the flowers with edible gold paint or splattering paint over the cake, if desired.
Bree
This cake is sooo good and so moist. I could happily eat it with no frosting at all (but I frosted it). I think I liked it even better on day 2!? Keep a close eye on it in the oven because it went from wet toothpick to clean very quickly (27 min for me). The frosting was good as well (though I still prefer a SMBC or a really tangy cream cheese frosting). The color is really pretty without having to use dye. Drag your toothpick from the bottom to the top when making your stem designs. The other direction led to less smooth lines for me.