Chocolate Almond Cake
Julia Child’s Chocolate Almond Cake may just be my new favorite cake. It’s incredibly rich and decadent. The center is purposefully undercooked, leaving a fudgy center you’ll crave long after the cake is gone.
After spending two weeks away on vacation, I very much enjoyed coming home and slipping into our old routine— grocery shopping on monday, laundry on thursday, pizza night on friday. I also relished returning to my kitchen. It felt so good to be cooking and baking again.
And after weeks of talking about things like sugar and canning on the blog, I wanted to share a purely beautiful and completely delicious indulgence. Like this chocolate cake.
And not just any chocolate cake, Julia Child’s chocolate almond cake from Mastering the Art of French Cooking. If you were only to bake one chocolate cake for the rest of your life, this may be it. It’s not super fancy, with multiple layers, a complicated filling, and intricate decorating, and it doesn’t need any of that. It’s perfect as it is.
I left the recipe as she wrote it, with one exception. I could barely frost half of the cake with the chocolate butter frosting recipe provided, so I made another batch. I’ve given the recipe below with the doubled icing, but feel free to cut it in half if you’d like to try it with less.
baking tip:How to fold ingredients together
“Folding” is a method of gently combining ingredients without knocking the air out of the mixture, such as with whipped egg whites or whipped cream. Here’s how it’s done:
- Begin by adding one third of the lighter mixture (such as whipped egg whites) to the thicker batter to loosen it
- Using the spatula, cut straight down through the mixture to the bottom of the bowl and scoop up the mixture and fold it over on top of itself.
- Rotate the bowl a quarter turn and repeat until the lighter ingredients are incorporated into the batter.
- Fold in the remaining lighter mixture in small batches.
Here’s a quick video if you need a visual!
Chocolate Almond Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 4 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate , chopped (113 grams)
- 2 tablespoons rum or coffee
- ½ cup unsalted butter , at room temperature (113 grams)
- ⅔ cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar , divided (132 grams)
- 3 large eggs , separated
- Pinch of salt
- ⅓ cup almond flour/meal (35 grams)
- ¼ teaspoon almond extract
- ½ cup cake flour , sifted (57 grams)
For the icing:
- 4 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate , chopped (113 grams)
- ¼ cup rum or coffee (60 ml)
- ¾ cup unsalted butter , at room temperature (170 grams)
- Slivered almonds for garnish
Instructions
To make the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour an 8-inch round cake pan and line with parchment paper.
- Combine the chopped chocolate and coffee or rum in a small bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir as the chocolate melts and remove from heat as soon as it's smooth. Set aside to cool.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and 2/3 cup sugar until pale and creamy. Add the 3 egg yolks and beat until thick. Add the cooled melted chocolate. Stir in the almond extract and almond meal/flour and mix until just combined.
- In a separate bowl and with a whisk attachment, whip the 3 egg whites and salt on high speed until foamy. Slowly add the tablespoon of sugar and whip to stiff peaks.
- Add ¼ of the whipped egg whites to the batter and fold gently until combined. Add and fold in the remaining whites in 3 additions, alternating with the sifted cake flour. Fold only until the streaks of egg whites disappear, do not overmix.
- Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake until the edges are set but the center still jiggles when the pan is bumped, about 25 minutes.
- Let cool 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edges to remove cake from pan and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
To make the icing:
- Combine the chopped chocolate and coffee or run in a small bowl placed over a saucepan of simmering water. Stir as the chocolate melts and remove from heat as soon as it's smooth.
- Add the butter a tablespoon at a time and use a whisk to beat it into the chocolate. Whisk until smooth.
- Let the icing cool to a spreadable consistency, stirring it every 5 minutes or so. It should take about 15-20 minutes, depending on the temperature of your kitchen.
- Spoon the icing on top of the cooled cake and spread it to cover. Garnish with slivered almonds.
Notes
The first time I made this cake was from Julia’s cookbook and I ran out of icing too so I’m glad you pointed that out. The cake is the best I’ve ever had.
Don’t think i’ve ever tried this cake. Sounds so good. Thanks for sharing this recipe. will be giving this a go.
Simon
I am so disappointed…tasteless. The icing is terrible. Wasted my time and money…
I think people making comments BEFORE they make the cake is useless…
Hello! and thank you so much for sharing the recipe! I’ve been craving this cake since the movie came out! I wnated to know if there’s any way to replace the almond extract! Can I replace it with amaretto? I live in Peru, and I can’t find it anywhere! please help! thanks again! Love your blog!
Whoever is telling that he/she made this cake, have you not followed the instructions? Obviously you didn’t, because I just did and 170g of butter for the icing just messed up all the cake. Please check and correct the weight of your ingrediants.
Hi Mert, you left this message well over a year ago but I’m still replying, just in case anyone would be browsing the comment section and wondering.
While 170g of butter might be “too much” in terms of calories and overall richness (this is subjective), it certainly does not mess up the cake! As detailed in the recipe, you simply need to wait until the ganache cools down for it to set. I left my pan outside (it’s pretty cold now in Northeastern France) and the frosting took just under 20 minutes and a few stirs to be perfectly set and spreadable 🙂
Cake is done, frosting looks out of this world, can’t wait to try it!
All the best
Can I replace the sugar with agave, honey or coconut sugar? Has anybody tried that?
I have no experience substituting the sugar in a recipe like this with something like agave or honey, so I am no help, sorry! Perhaps another reader can provide some advice. I can guess that you’ll need to change the method some, as the creaming of granulated sugar and butter helps give cakes rise and texture.
Thank you! I will be making it…on a cheat day 😉
This cake is the best! I’ve made it with and without icing, and every time it’s been absolutely magic – all I need is more occasions to bake it for 🙂
You’ve got a new follower – thanks for sharing
Can I use cocoa powder instead of melting chocolate?
Hello –
I searched for a chocolate almond cake to make for my mom’s birthday and this site popped up.
The funny thing is that our family was just talking about Julie and Julia last week so when I saw the connection to this recipe, I just had to give this recipe a shot.
In short, this cake had a completely amazing taste. I didn’t spread the topping around the sides but opted to just let it ooze over when leveling on top. It gave it a molten lava visual effect.
This recipe also taught me a new technique regarding egg whites. I usually get impatient with recipes that call for those few extra steps, but these sure made a difference in the taste and texture of this amazing little cake.
Thanks much for sharing and now it’s off to the blueberry hand pies.
Hi David, I’m so glad you gave this recipe a try and enjoyed it so much! Thanks for the comment. Let me know what you think of the hand pies! 🙂
ok, i’ve just made this cake.
no words….. <3
Glad you liked it!!
W-o-w
i’m in love with this cake and i’ve just watched “Julie & Julia”.
Maybe Tomorrow i’ll try and let you know and publish on my blog!
Of course, i’ll try some of your website’s receipes, your photos are wonderful!!
Congratulations!
Carlotta
p.s i’m sorry for my terrible english but.. i’m italian and not so good in it…
Need to bake this cake!!
I’ve been on such an almond kick recently. (For instance, I’m currently eating some brown sugar almond butter.) I’m totally saving this recipe! Thanks for posting!
I made this today! turned out perfectly.
Yay, so glad you enjoyed them!
Love the almonds! The more on there the better!