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Lemon Almond Flour Cake

Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 8
Author Margaret Bose Johnson

Ingredients

  • 4 large eggs
  • ½ cup (120ml) sugar preferably natural evaporated cane sugar
  • zest of 1 lemon
  • ¼ cup (60ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
  • ½ cup (120m)l olive oil
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup (110gms) almond flour
  • ½ cup (75gms) millet flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon powdered psyllium husk optional

for the glaze:

  • juice of 1 lemon about 2 tablespoons
  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) honey
  • 2 tablespoons (30ml) rum or water
  • powdered sugar to dust the top of the cake

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Trace the bottom of an 8-inch (20cm) springform pan onto parchment paper and cut out the circle. Trim it so it lays flat in the pan. Lift it out of the pan, grease the pan, then lay the paper circle back into the springform pan and grease it, too.
  • With the whisk attachment of an electric mixer (or a hand whisk and lots of elbow grease), beat the eggs and sugar until they are light and fluffy and look like pale yellow softly whipped cream.
  • Add the  lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil and vanilla extract. Beat well.
  • Add the almond flour, millet flour, baking powder, baking soda and psyllium husk powder (if using).
  • Mix just until combined and pour into the prepared pan.
  • Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top no longer feels jiggly to the touch and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with crumbs attached. The cake will be quite dark.
  • In a small saucepan, heat the lemon juice, honey and rum (or water) until the honey is just melted and the mixture is hot. One spoonful at a time, so you can control where the glaze goes, drizzle the glaze over the top of the hot cake. Drizzle mostly around the outside edge of the cake so it gets soaked. The cake will have dropped slightly in the middle and most of the glaze will run there anyway, so make sure to douse the edges well so the cake is evenly moistened.
  • When the cake is cool, remove the outside of the springform pan. Just before serving, sprinkle the top of the cake with powdered sugar shaken through a small sieve or tea strainer.

Notes

Powdered psyllium husk helps hold the cake together better and makes a nicer texture, but you can omit it if you don't have it and still have great results.
If you use regular all-purpose flour instead of the millet flour you can also skip the psyllium husk. (Your cake will no longer be gluten-free, though.)
You can use regular olive oil for this recipe, but if you have a nice, fruity, extra virgin olive oil (the kind that has a grassy-green or deep-golden tinge) - use it to add a complex, depth to the cake.
And do add the glaze. It's what makes the cake.