Tarta de Santiago
A classic Spanish almond cake with a delicate crumb and nutty flavor, topped with a powdered sugar cross. Ready in under an hour with just six pantry staples.
- Total time
- 55 min
- Servings
- 8
- Calories
- 458
- Protein
- 12g
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole almonds, raw or roasted
- 6 whole large eggs
- 1.5 cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup butter, softened
- 1 whole lemon, zested
- 2 tablespoons powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- 1
Set the oven to 350°F and wait until the indicator light goes off or you hear a beep, about 10 minutes.
- 2
Line the bottom of a 9-inch round cake pan with parchment paper and lightly butter the sides so the cake does not stick.
- 3
Pour the 2 cups of almonds into a food processor and blend until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs with some pea-sized pieces remaining, about 1 minute.
- 4
Place the 6 eggs and 1.5 cups sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until the mixture is pale yellow, fluffy, and roughly tripled in volume, about 4 minutes.
- 5
Add the 0.5 cup softened butter to the egg mixture in three additions, beating on medium speed for 30 seconds after each addition until fully combined.
- 6
Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula to remove any unmixed butter or eggs clinging to the bowl walls.
- 7
Add the lemon zest and ground almonds to the batter and fold gently with a rubber spatula, lifting from the bottom and folding over the top, until no streaks of almond remain, about 40 seconds.
- 8
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula until it is even and level.
- 9
Place the cake pan in the preheated 350°F oven and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it, about 30 minutes.
- 10
Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the pan on the counter for 5 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack and let it cool completely, about 20 minutes.
- 11
Place a small sieve or tea strainer filled with 2 tablespoons powdered sugar over the top of the cooled cake and gently tap the side of the sieve with your finger so the sugar falls in a thin, even layer.
- 12
Lay two wooden skewers or thin sticks diagonally across the cake to form an X shape, then lift them away carefully to reveal a white cross dusted onto the cake surface.
Tools you’ll need
- 9-inch round cake pan
- parchment paper
- food processor
- large mixing bowl
- electric mixer
- rubber spatula
- toothpick
- wire cooling rack
- small sieve or tea strainer
- wooden skewers (optional, for cross pattern)
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