PostHole
Compose
Login
"Now this is a CAKE.": Everyone Begs for a Second Slice of This Soft and Fluffy
Meet your new birthday cake.
READ MORE...
- Recipes
- Desserts
- Cakes
Fluffy Almond Cake
Ali DomrongchaiAssociate Editor, Groceries
published 3 days ago
Be the first to leave a review!
[Three-layer cake with almond slices on the outside, partially cut, revealing creamy layers inside.]
Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe; Food Styling: Janette Zepeda
If you love almonds, you’ll fall for this soft and fluffy white cake with a not-too-sweet almond buttercream.
Serves12 to 16
Prep1 hour
Cook20 minutes to 25 minutes
Cook Mode+
Jump to Recipe
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
[Three-layer cake with almond slices on the outside, partially cut, revealing creamy layers inside.]
Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe; Food Styling: Janette Zepeda
Quick Overview
Why You’ll Love It
- The cake is tender, moist, and holds its own. Even without being frosted, this cake is delightfully fragrant and nutty.
- The frosting is smooth and fluffy without being overly sweet. A generous helping of heavy cream in the buttercream lightens the frosting, making it smooth, giving it body, and taming the sweetness of the powdered sugar.
- It’s striking without requiring any intense decorating. Toasted sliced almonds do all the heavy lifting.
Nutty, sweet almonds get the cake treatment in this almond nut cake. Fluffy layers of white cake encase a silky-smooth, not-too-sweet, almond-flavored buttercream before being generously covered with crunchy, toasted sliced almonds. While I do love the flavor of almonds, I find almond extract can be temperamental. If you don’t add enough it can become lost, but if you put even the slightest bit too much it can become overwhelming and cloying. In this recipe, I made sure to use just enough almond extract in both the cake and buttercream to yield that sweet, floral, nutty flavor and keep it balanced by adding a splash of vanilla extract to mellow. The resulting cake is tender, moist, and perfectly sweet.
Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe; Food Styling: Janette Zepeda
Straight from Our Recipe Tester
*“LOVED! Now this is a CAKE. The almond is pronounced yet delicate, and the sweetness is well-rounded. The cake itself is soft and fluffy — not too heavy and goes really well with the lightly sweetened almond frosting.”* —Ali, January 2026
Key Ingredients in Almond Nut Cake
- Sour cream: Makes for a supremely moist, tender cake.
- Cornstarch: In combination with all-purpose flour yields a soft crumb.
- Almond extract: Flavors the buttercream and cake, yielding a sweet, nutty, floral flavor.
- Vanilla extract: Mellows the boldness of the almond extract.
- Heavy cream: A generous amount in the buttercream makes for a full-bodied yet light frosting.
- Sliced almonds: Provides texture and further drives home the almond flavor.
Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe; Food Styling: Janette Zepeda
How to Make Almond Nut Cake
- Make the cakes. Take care to use room-temperature ingredients for an even crumb.
- Make the frosting. Feel free to sift your powdered sugar if particularly clumpy.
- Assemble and decorate. The cake should be covered evenly with frosting, but it doesn’t have to be picture-perfect smooth. The sliced almonds hide any and all imperfections!
Storage and Make-Ahead Tips
- Leftover cake can be stored whole and covered or sliced in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day or refrigerated for up to 4 days.
- The cake layers can be baked up to 1 day ahead. Once cooled, tightly wrap the cakes in plastic wrap and store at room temperature.
- The entire cake can be made up to 1 day ahead. The whole cake can be stored covered and left at room temperature overnight.
More Almond Desserts
Comments
Fluffy Almond Cake Recipe
If you love almonds, you’ll fall for this soft and fluffy white cake with a not-too-sweet almond buttercream.
Prep time 1 hour
Cook time 20 minutes to 25 minutes
Serves 12 to 16
Nutritional Info
- Calories 878
- Fat 58.6 g (75.1%)
- Saturated 25.2 g (107.4%)
- Carbs 82.9 g (28.3%)
- Fiber 3.2 g (8.5%)
- Sugars 57.7 g
- Protein 9.2 g (7.9%)
- Sodium 263.3 mg (17.6%)
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 3/4 cup
sour cream, at room temperature
- 8 tablespoons
(1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 6
large egg whites, at room temperature
Cooking spray
- 2 2/3 cups
all-purpose flour, plus more for the pans
- 1/4 cup
cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons
baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon
baking soda
- 1/4 cup
water
- 1 teaspoon
kosher salt
- 2 cups
granulated sugar
- 2 1/4 teaspoons
almond extract
- 1 teaspoon
vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup
neutral oil, such as canola or vegetable
For the buttercream and finishing:
- 1 pound
(4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3 1/4 cups
powdered sugar
- 1 1/4 teaspoons
almond extract
- 1/2 teaspoon
vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon
kosher salt
- 1/2 cup
cold heavy cream
- 2 cups
toasted sliced almonds
Instructions
Make the cake:
Heat the oven to 350°F. Lightly coat the bottom and sides of 3 (8-inch) round cake pans with cooking spray. Line the bottom of each pan with a parchment paper round. Lightly dust each pan with all-purpose flour and tap out the excess.
Whisk 2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour, 1/4 cup cornstarch, 2 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda together in a medium bowl.
Whisk 3/4 cup room-temperature sour cream, 1/4 cup water, and 1 teaspoon kosher salt together in a small bowl or liquid measuring cup until smooth.
Beat 1 stick room-temperature unsalted butter, 2 cups granulated sugar, 2 1/4 teaspoons almond extract, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract together in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed until combined, scraping down the sides of a bowl as needed, about 1 minute.
With the mixer still running, pour in 1/2 cup neutral oil. Continue to beat, scraping the bowl as needed, until the mixture is very lightened in color, about 1 1/2 minutes total.
Beat in 6 room-temperature large egg whites one at a time, waiting until each is incorporated before adding the next. Scrape the bowl after every 2 egg whites are beaten in.
Add half of the flour mixture and beat on low speed until just combined, about 15 seconds. Scrape the bowl down. Add the sour cream mixture and beat on low speed until just incorporated, about 20 seconds. Scrape the bowl down. Add the remaining flour mixture and beat on low speed until fully combined, about 20 seconds more.
Divide the batter between the baking pans (about 2 cups or 1 pound each) and smooth into an even layer. Bake until the cakes are light golden-brown and a tester inserted into the centers comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.
[...]