Brown Butter Almond Cake Recipe

Preheat and prepare pan

Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F). Grease an 8-inch (20 cm) round cake pan with 10 g butter, then lightly dust with 1 tsp flour, tapping out excess. Line the bottom with a circle of parchment for easy removal.

Brown the butter

In a light-colored medium saucepan, melt 170 g unsalted butter over medium heat. Swirl occasionally. After 5–8 minutes the butter will foam, the milk solids will brown and a nutty aroma will develop. Remove from heat as soon as the solids are golden brown. Pour the browned butter into a heatproof bowl to stop cooking and let cool until warm (about 10 minutes).

Combine dry ingredients

In a bowl whisk together 160 g all-purpose flour, 90 g almond flour, 2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp fine sea salt until evenly distributed.

Cream sugar and eggs (no separate butter creaming)

In a large mixing bowl, whisk 180 g granulated sugar with the 3 large eggs until pale and slightly thickened, about 2–3 minutes by hand or 1 minute with a hand mixer. Whisk in 1.5 tsp vanilla extract and 1 tbsp lemon zest.

Finish batter

Slowly drizzle the warm (not hot) browned butter into the egg-sugar mixture while whisking constantly to prevent scrambling. Add the dry ingredients in two additions, folding gently with a spatula after each addition until mostly incorporated. Stir in 60 ml whole milk to loosen the batter; fold until smooth and homogenous but do not overmix.

Bake

Pour batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top. Bake in the center of the preheated oven for 30–38 minutes, until the top is golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. If top browns too quickly, tent loosely with foil for the last 8–10 minutes.

Cool

Remove cake from oven and let rest in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife around edge, invert onto rack, remove parchment, then invert again to right-side-up. Cool completely (about 1 hour) before slicing to avoid crumbly texture.

Prepare fruit

While cake bakes or cools, warm a skillet over medium heat and add 15 g unsalted butter. Add 300 g seasonal fruit (berries, sliced stone fruit, or halved figs) and sprinkle 1 tbsp brown sugar over. Sauté gently for 2–4 minutes until fruit releases juices but still holds shape. Stir in 1 tsp fresh lemon juice at the end and remove from heat. Taste and add a pinch more sugar if fruit is very tart.

Toast almonds

In a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, toast 30 g slivered almonds, stirring often, until fragrant and lightly golden, about 3–4 minutes. Transfer to a plate to cool.

Assemble

Slice cake into 8 equal slices. Place a slice on each plate, top with a generous spoonful of warm sautéed fruit, one scoop of vanilla ice cream (or more to taste), and sprinkle with toasted slivered almonds. Dust lightly with 1 tsp powdered sugar if using.

Serving temperature

Serve immediately so warm fruit contrasts with cold ice cream and the cake's nutty brown-butter flavor is prominent.