Updated 03.18.25
The base of the cake is made with a combination of all-purpose flour and almond flour, juice and sour cream, creating a soft, tender and creamy cake. This cake is baked upside down, but the tender fruit slices do not caramelize like a traditional upside-down cake. A thin layer of simply syrup is preserving the vibrant colors.
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Key Ingredients in This Recipe
You’ll find the complete list of ingredients and exact quantities in the recipe below.
For the cake
- All-purpose flour
- Almond flour
- Baking powder
- Butter
- Light brown sugar
- Egg
- Sour cream
- Orange zest and juice
For the orange layer
- Granulated sugar
- Oranges – I used a blood orange and a tangelos (honeybell orange), for a beautiful color effect, but you can use traditional oranges as well.
Before you begin, this quick video shows the main steps and what to look for along the way.
How to Make Orange Almond Cake
Step 1 – Mix light brown sugar with butter until creamy. This mixture will not be as creamy and pale as a combination of granulated sugar and butter.
Step 2 – Add orange zest, orange juice and an egg and mix until combined.
Step 3 – Add the sour cream and mix again.
Step 4 – Mix all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder and salt. Add this flour mixture to the sugar-butter mixture and beat until combined.
Step 5 – In a glass jar or bowl, combine water and sugar and heat in the microwave, until sugar is completely dissolved. Allow to cool for a few minutes. In the meantime, peel oranges and slice super thin, making use of a sharp mandoline or cut by hand. Pour the syrup into a 6×6 baking dish, lined with parchment paper. Arrange the orange slices at the bottom of the baking dish, in the syrup.
Step 6 – Now it’s time to add the batter. Place many large dollops over the orange slices and spread those towards each other to cover the entire surface. This way you can ‘connect’ the batter without moving the fruit slices around.
Step 6 – Bake the cake in a 350°F oven for about 35 minutes. If the cake starts to brown too quickly, cover it loosely with aluminum foil. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for about 20 minutes, then invert the cake onto a plate. Let cool for 10 minutes more, before you cut into the cake.
Every time I invert this cake, I am pleasantly surprised how well the colors hold up during baking.
Frequently Asked Questions
Insert a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out almost clean, with a few moist crumbs, the cake is ready!
Yes, it is. However, this cake is made with all-purpose as well, so not appropriate when you are gluten sensitive.
Sure! Amaranth flour, buckwheat flour, chickpea flour, oat flour, to name a few.
It adds a really nice nutty flavor to this cake. Almond flour is also higher in fiber, protein, but also higher in fat and calories. Think about it, almond flour is ground almonds, so the difference of nutritional values between almond flour and ‘normal’ flour should not come as a surprise.
A sensitivity to almonds may present itself quite innocently; rumbling and gurgling sounds from your stomach (this is often noisy and sometimes embarrassing).
Symptoms can be(come) more serious, like bloating, or stomach cramps and worse. As I am not a doctor, I would advise to consult your doctor. If the diagnosis fall in the ‘innocent’ category, you could consider ‘experimenting’ with the ratio almond flour : all-purpose flour and see what ratio will work for you to avoid any inconveniences.
You can cut this small batch Orange Almond Cake as you like. Cut it in 4 equal squares (3×3) or on 9 mini squares (1×1). The cake is about 1.5 inches high.
Orange Almond Cake
Pin Recipe FacebookIngredients
For the Cake
- 70 grams all-purpose flour
- 60 grams almond flour
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 110 grams light brown sugar
- 70 grams butter
- 1 whole egg
- 1/2 tablespoon orange zest
- 1/2 tablespoon orange juice
- 70 grams sour cream
For the Orange Layer
- 1 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoons water
- 1/2 blood orange
- 1/2 minneola tangelo / Honeybell orange (NOTE 1)
Instructions
- Line a 6×6 baking dish with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Mix light brown sugar with butter until creamy fluffy. (NOTE 2)
- Add orange zest, orange juice and egg and mix until combined.
- Add the sour cream and mix until just combined.
- Mix all-purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder and salt. Add this flour mixture and beat until combined.
- In a glass jar or bowl, combine water and granulated sugar and heat in a microwave until sugar is completely dissolved. Allow this syrup to cool for a few minutes.
- In the meantime peel oranges and slice super thin, making use of a knife or a mandoline slicer.
- Pour the syrup into the baking dish and arrange the orange slices over the syrup, filling the entire baking dish. Design the top of your orange almond cake at this moment.
- Now it's time to add the batter. Place many large dollops over the orange slices and spread those towards each other to cover the entire surface. This way you can 'connect' the batter without moving the fruit slices around.
- Bake the cake in the oven for about 35 minutes. If the cake starts to brown too quickly, cover it loosely with aluminum foil.
- Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for about 20 minutes, then invert the cake onto a plate. Let cool for 10 minutes more, before you cut into the cake.
Notes
- I picked a minneola tangelo or honeybell orange because it is very juice and has less flesh or membranes inside. This means that a layer of tangelo slices are easy to cut and eat.
- Brown sugar and butter does not whip up as fluffy and pale as granulated sugar and butter.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.