Almond Minicakes

Today I wanted to try some more intricate decorating, so I found an almond minicake recipe from Sweet Miniatures by Flo Braker and gave it a try. The cake itself is pretty sweet, and with the white chocolate glaze, I decided to add a bit of lemon to the Buttercream decorations to cut the sweetness a bit. It is a good match. Next time I'll try a different glaze recipe thought, as mine didn't cover as well as I'd hoped. The taste is good, but it's a bit too thin and just ran off.

Almond Minicakes (makes 24 1 1/4 inch cakes)

8 ounces almond paste, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
3 eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon sifted cake flour


1. Preheat oven to 350º, move a rack to the bottom third of oven. Grease and flour a 7 inch square pan.
2. Beat the almond paste at low speed to break it up. Add the sugar in a steady stream and mix till incorporated. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the lemon zest. Then lightly mix in the cake flour.
3. Pour the mixture into the pan and smooth the top.
4. Bake for 25 minutes or until the top springs back lightly when touched.
5. Let cool on a wire rack. Place in freezer for a few minutes to make easier to cut.
6. Turn out onto a cutting board and cut the cake into 24 1 1/4 inch pieces. Place the pieces on a wire rack over a backing sheet.
7. Ladle 2 tablespoons of the glaze on top of each cake. When you run out, pour the excess off of the baking sheet back into the bowl. You may need to reheat or strain the glaze to make it the right consistency and to remove crumbs.
8. While the glaze is still liquid, move the cakes on the rack to give a smooth finish on the bottom and prevent sticking.
9. After glaze has set, decorate as desired.

White Chocolate Glaze

4 ounces unsalted butter, diced
8 ounces white chocolate, finely chopped

1. Melt the butter and chocolate together and stir until smooth.

Buttercream Frosting

2 ounces shortening
2 cups confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
Food Coloring (optional)

1. Mix first 4 ingredients together until light and fluffy.
2. Add the food coloring and stir until the color is consistent.