Sunken Grape Almond Cake

Sunken Grape Almond Cake. A rich, buttery almond cake with pops of sweet tart flavour from the little grapes that get baked right inside. A beautiful addition to your weekend brunch.

Sunken Grape Almond Cake

Originally published Sept 2018. 

I saw this idea on an Italian cooking show some years ago where they made a grape cake to celebrate the beginning of the harvest.

It came to mind this week when I saw some sweet and tart little Coronation grapes from southern Ontario which are in season right now. They are related to Concord grapes which, like any small grape variety could be easily substituted.

I decided to use an almond cake recipe that I really like but unfortunately the batter was too light, rose too much and then sank in the centre. It tasted delicious but looked a complete disaster. Back to the drawing board.

Sunken Grape Almond Cake

Spouse’s mom, Violet was here at the time and happily took the delicious but rough looking first attempt home to enjoy.  In contradiction to the popular phrase, I guess that ill wind actually did blow her some good. She seemed delighted to have it.

Sunken Grape Almond Cake 2.0

I still had plenty of those tasty little grapes left over, so the next day, attempt number two got underway.

I tweaked the amount of flour and baking powder in the recipe as an experiment. Within the first 20 minutes in the oven, it was clear this attempt was at least going to be a visual success.

Sunken Grape Almond Cake ready for the oven.

The proof was still in the tasting, of course and it turns out I had nothing to worry about on that count either. Tender, buttery, nutty and with sweet and tart pops of flavor from the tiny grapes that had sunk into the center.

It was perfectly delicious and just how I had imagined it would taste.

It would be perfect at a weekend brunch or even as dessert at a special dinner. Like in my Pear and Almond Cake, this dessert would no doubt be excellent served with Creme Anglais or any good custard.

Sunken Grape Almond Cake.

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Yield: 12 servings

Sunken Grape Almond Cake

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

A rich, buttery coffee cake with ground almonds and pops of sweet tart flavour from the little grapes that get baked right inside.

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Ingredients

• 1 cup toasted ground almonds
• 1 1/4 cups sifted all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• pinch salt
• 1 cup butter
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp almond extract
• 2 cups small grapes
• 1 tsp lemon zest, finely minced

Instructions

1. Grease a 10 inch spring form pan and line the bottom with parchment paper for easy release of the cake after it is baked. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2. Sift together the ground almonds, flour, baking powder and salt and set aside.
3. Cream together the butter, sugar, vanilla extract and almond extract until light and fluffy.
4. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the lemon zest.
5. Mix in the dry ingredients until the batter is smooth and spread the it evenly into the prepared pan.
6. Place small grapes all over the surface of the batter about a 1/4 inch (6mm) apart. Any variety of small grape will work or you can use small pitted cherries or large blueberries instead. Do not push them into the batter just drop them onto the surface.
7. Bake for about 50-60 minutes or until evenly brown on top and a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 20 minutes before releasing the cake and cooling on a wire rack. If you are serving the cake warm, you should still wait the 20 minutes to allow it to settle before cutting.

Notes

Tip: I toast whole almonds in a preheated 350 degree oven for 5-8 minutes on a cookie sheet. tossing them at least once. I then grind them very finely in a food processor. Be sure to lightly pack the ground almonds into the measuring cup.

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The nutritional information provided is automatically calculated by third party software and is meant as a guideline only. Exact accuracy is not guaranteed. For recipes where all ingredients may not be used entirely, such as those with coatings on meats, or with sauces or dressings for example, calorie & nutritional values per serving will likely be somewhat lower than indicated.

Nutrition Information

Yield

12

Serving Size

1 slice (1/12th cake)
Amount Per Serving Calories 366Total Fat 21gSaturated Fat 10gUnsaturated Fat 0gCholesterol 81mgSodium 152mgCarbohydrates 41gFiber 1gSugar 28gProtein 5g

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