Tarta de Santiago (Spanish Almond Cake)
This Tarta de Santiago is a light Spanish almond cake rich with citrus zest, sweet egg yolks, and sifted sugar, baked to a tender crumb and topped with a crisp stencil of powdered sugar. Free of milk or butter, it’s elegant yet simple—perfect for sharing.
Ingredients
- 3/4 pound ground blanched almonds 340 grams
- 9 large eggs separated
- 2 scant cups superfine or regular sugar 380 grams
- Grated zest of 1 1/2 oranges
- Grated zest of 1 1/2 lemons
- 6 drops almond extract
- Confectioners' sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Grease a large mold or a 16-inch springform pan, preferably nonstick, with oil and dust it with flour.
- With an electric mixer, beat the egg yolks with the sugar to a smooth pale cream. Beat in the zests and almond extract.
- Add the ground almonds and mix very well.
- With clean beaters, beat the egg whites in a large bowl until stiff peaks form. Add 1/3 of the whites to the stiff yolk mixture and stir well to loosen and lighten it up. Fold the remaining whites into the mixture.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan or mold, and bake into a preheated 350°F for 40 minutes, or until it feels firm to the touch. Let cool before turning out.
- Just before serving, dust the top of the cake with confectioners' sugar. You can also use a stencil: Place it in the middle of the cake, and dust the cake with confectioners' sugar, then remove the paper.
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