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Amygdalopita
Almond syrup cake
Amygdalópita: Kefalonian almond cake soaked in light syrup
Kefalonia is almond country, and amygdalopita is what islanders bake for the feast of Agios Gerasimos in August and for guests all year round: a moist, flourless-leaning cake of ground almonds, eggs and breadcrumbs, soaked in light lemon syrup until it's dense and fragrant. Serve a small square with coffee or a spoon of thick yoghurt. Common mistake: grinding the almonds too long, so they turn oily and the cake heavy — pulse them until just sandy. Chef's tip: toast half the almonds before grinding for a deeper, nuttier flavour.
- Total time
- 65 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
For the syrup
- 9 oz granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- 1 lemonpeel strips and 1 tbsp juice
For the cake
- 10 ½ oz blanched almonds
- 6 eggsseparated
- 6 ½ oz caster sugar
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 1 tbsp light olive or sunflower oilfor the tin
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Boil 9 oz granulated sugar, 1 cup water and the peel of 1 lemon for 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice and leave to cool completely.
5 minStep 2: Heat the oven to 350°F (300°F fan) and oil a 23 × 30 cm tin with 1 tbsp light olive or sunflower oil. Toast half the 10 ½ oz blanched almonds on a tray for 8 minutes until pale golden; cool, then pulse all the almonds in a food processor until sandy.
10 minStep 3: Beat the egg yolks from 6 eggs with 6 ½ oz caster sugar until thick and pale, about 4 minutes.
4 minStep 4: Stir in the almonds, 2 ⅞ oz fine dried breadcrumbs or crushed rusks, 1 ½ tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ground cinnamon and 1 tbsp orange zest; it will be stiff.
Step 5: Whisk the egg whites to stiff peaks. Stir a third into the almond mix to loosen it, then fold in the rest gently until no white streaks remain.
Step 6: Spread in the tin and bake for 35–40 minutes, until golden, risen and a skewer comes out clean.
40 minStep 7: Prick all over with a skewer and spoon the cold syrup evenly over the hot cake. Leave at least 2 hours to soak before cutting into diamonds.
120 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 9 g
- Carbs
- 41 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does amygdalopita take?
- About 65 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 40 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 12 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of granulated sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
- What can I use instead of lemon?
- Lime, or 2 tbsp bottled lemon juice per lemon (no zest from bottled juice).
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