Sour Almond Loaf Cake with Lemon Hibiscus Glaze
Spurs of a Sunday Afternoon
(UPDATED! I added a short video so you can see the process behind this amazing cake and also made some notes about adding a bit of oil to the batter and using cake flour and buttermilk)
This cake guys! It’s an almond loaf cake with sour notes thanks to the buttermilk and sour cream in the batter. It has a tight crumb and yet it’s super soft because I used homemade cake flour making it mixing flour and cornstarch. I also used almond extract instead of vanilla to let those buttermilk notes shine. And then you hit that sweet lemony glaze that I made using lemon juice and hibiscus tea. It’s totally addictive! Not kidding! I ate two pieces in one sitting because of its addictive powers. So beware and eat at your own risk!
What I love about this simple sour almond loaf cake is that you can truly eat it at any time you want. Because, in terms of ratio, this almond loaf cake is not packed with a lot sugar or fat. That makes it perfectly fine as a light breakfast or a late night snack. Regular or decaf coffee on the side depending on the hour. It’s such a sweet treat!
I’m pretty sure that it will make your week start brilliantly. I made it in a snap during a Sunday afternoon after doing the lunch dishes. That’s how easy this sour almond loaf cake is to make! For some reason I craved something sweet with floral notes. And not wanting yet again the same traditional vanilla flavor, I let my mind wonder about the idea of using just almond extract. That idea did not disappoint. I took out simple and everyday baking ingredients and in about 25 minutes this sour almond loaf cake was in the oven. And that includes the time for the butter to become soft.
I’m telling you, you will be making this sour almond loaf cake again and again. And then again just to share it with your family and friends. I’m know I’ll be baking my third one soon, and I haven’ t yet made my second one ;)
Can’t wait to read all about how much you loved this simple almond loaf cake recipe! Don’t forget to take a pic and tag me so I can share it with everyone!
How to make Sour Almond Loaf Cake
Start by mixing milk with vinegar and taking your butter out of the fridge. You want your butter soft but not warm. You should be able to leave an indentation on it if you press it lightly, but it should still feel a bit chill. (update: if you have buttermilk then skip this step altogether.)
While the butter is softening, sift your flour and cornstarch (update: or just cake four) with baking powder and salt. You can make homemade cake flour by taking two tablespoons out of one cup of flour and substituting them with cornstarch. It’s not cake flour by definition but it sure does the trick! This loaf cake recipe calls for 1 ¾ unbleached all-purpose flour and ¼ cup of cornstarch, which is the equivalent of 2 cups of cake flour.
When the butter is ready, beat it with the sugar and almond extract (update: add 1 TBSP of vegetable oil to keep this cake soft for days). Then add eggs, one at a time. Scrape the sour cream into the batter and pour the milk mixture, or buttermilk if using. End by adding the dry mixture, not dumping it on the bowl but adding it about ¾ cup at a time.
At this point beat just until flour mixture is incorporated. With a spatula mix any large visible streaks of flour. Scrap bottom of bowl to make sure there are not big lumps of flour there. It’s important to not over mix. This is key for yielding a soft loaf cake.
Scrape batter into prepared loaf cake pan. Mine was baked perfectly in exactly one hour but if your home is smelling too much of cake after 50 minutes, check it during the last 5 minutes of baking and test for fineness by inserting a large tooth pick to see if it comes out clean of raw batter. Wait 5 to 10 minutes for the loaf cake to cool down before removing it from the pan. And please, remember to not open the oven door while baking is in progress.
Wait until it cools down completely before pouring the lemon hibiscus glaze. I made the glaze with a strong brew of hibiscus tea but you can use hibiscus powder as well, just dissolve it in hot water first.
Remember that when doing glazes, a little amount of water goes a long way to make it pourable. Start by adding the tea to get the hue of pink you desire and from there add more liquid or sugar to achieve the desired taste and consistency. Check my guide about how to make a simple glaze if you want to learn how to make a glaze without a recipe anytime you want.
This cake gets even better during the second and third day after baked, if it gets to be around that long!
If you want to make this cake even more floral, rub 2 tablespoons of edible lavender with the sugar for a few minutes. Sift the sugar to remove most of the lavender buds and then return a pinch of them to the sugar. This will create a very subtle lavender flavor without the grassiness of the actual buds. There are so many ways to give your very own spin to this cake! Let me know in the comments what would be yours.
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Sour Almond Loaf Cake with Lemon Hibiscus Glaze
Ingredients
Sour Almond Loaf Cake
◯ Full fat organic milk – about ⅔ cup
◯ White vinegar – 1 TBSP
(UPDATE: use ¾ cup, 150g of just buttermilk instead)
◯ Unbleached all-purpose flour – 1 ¾ cup
◯ Cornstarch – ¼ cup
(UPDATE: use 2 cups, 286g of cake flour instead)
◯ Baking powder – 1 Tsp, 5g
◯ Fine sea salt – ½ Tsp, 4g
◯ Butter, softened – 8 TBSP (½ cup), 113.5g
◯ Natural granulated sugar – 1 ¼ cup, 263g
◯ Vegetable oil - 1 TBSP, 14g
◯ Almond extract – 1 Tsp, 6g
◯ Vanilla extract - ½ Tsp, 3g
◯ Large organic free range eggs - 3
◯ Sour cream, at room temperature – ¼ cup, 60g
Lemon Hibiscus Glaze
◯ Strong hibiscus tea brew – 2 to 4 TBSP
◯ Freshly squeezed lemon juice – about 1 TBSP
◯ Confectioner’s sugar, ideally sifted – about 1 ½ cup, 200g
◯ Water – about 1 TBSP
Details
Yield:
9” x 5” loaf cake pan
Total time:
1 hour 20 minutes
Active time:
20 minutes
Equipment:
stand mixer or electric hand mixer, 9” x 5” loaf cake pan
Steps
To make the sour almond loaf cake:
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease or spray with baking spray your loaf cake pan.
Mix milk with vinegar (update: if using buttermilk skip this step).
In a medium to large bowl mix the 1 ¾ cup of flour, the ¼ cup of cornstarch (or the 2 cups of cake flour if using), the 1 teaspoon of baking powder and the ½ teaspoon of salt with a hand whisk or fork. Then sift it through a large sieve into a large bowl.
Beat the 8 tablespoons of butter on your mixer on slow speed (#2 in the Kitchen Aid) for about one minute, just until loose and fluffed. Add the 1 ¼ of sugar and mix until a grainy paste form, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the 1 tablespoon of oil, the 1 teaspoon of almond and the ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract and beat 1 minutes. Add the 3 eggs and beat until well incorporated, 1 minute. Add the ¼ cup of sour cream and pour milk and vinegar mixture (or the ¾ cup of buttermilk) and mix once more to combine well. Decrease speed to the lowest and add flour mixture. Mix just until combined. Mix with a spatula any remaining large streaks of flour, making sure to scrape the bottom and walls of the bowl.
Scrape batter into prepared pan. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, until a large toothpick comes out clean after inserted through the middle of the cake. Wait about 10 minutes before removing cake form pan. Wait until it cools down completely before drizzling glaze (recipe follows).
To make the lemon hibiscus glaze:
Start by pouring 1 tablespoon of the hibiscus tea and lemon juice into the 1 ½ cup of sugar. Mix with a hand whisk. You should have a thick paste of glaze. If you want a more saturated pink color add a bit more of tea. If not, add a bit of water (or milk) and mix until desired consistency. If it becomes too runny add some extra sifted confectioner’s sugar and mix well.
