Food Recipes Apricot Almond Cake 5.0 (1) This elegant stonefruit cake is deceptively simple and decadently delicious. By Jenna Helwig Jenna Helwig Instagram Jenna is the food director at Real Simple and the author of Bare Minimum Dinners, a cookbook featuring more than 100 low-lift, high-reward recipes. Previously, Jenna was the food director at Health and Parents. She is also the founder and operator of Rosaberry, a boutique personal chef services company, and the author of four other cookbooks, including the bestselling Baby-Led Feeding. Real Simple's Editorial Guidelines Published on April 13, 2021 Print Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Greg DuPree Hands On Time: 20 mins Total Time: 1 hrs 40 mins Servings: 8 Meet your new favorite dessert: a tender cake that tastes like marzipan and looks like an elegant apricot tart. Almonds, like apricots, are stone fruits, which means the nuts accentuate the floral notes in the fruit. Baking draws out the jammy richness of the (canned!) apricots, while a glaze of preserves adds a bakery-worthy finish. It's not just the flavors that warrant a repeat of this tasty treat; the easy, streamlined method will make it a go-to for years to come. Psst…the recipe happens to be plant-based, but it'll delight everyone from vegans to omnivores. Ingredients Cooking spray 1 cup all-purpose flour ½ cup almond flour ½ cup granulated sugar 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon kosher salt ¾ cup unsweetened plain almond milk 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar ½ cup olive oil ½ teaspoon pure almond extract 1 15 oz. can apricot halves in heavy syrup (such as Del Monte), drained 1 tablespoon apricot preserves Directions Preheat the oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-inch springform pan with cooking spray. (If you don't have a springform pan, spray a 9-inch cake pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper.) Whisk all-purpose flour, almond flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Add milk and vinegar; stir to combine. Add oil and almond extract; stir until very well combined, about 60 strokes. Transfer to prepared pan. Note: The gluten in the flour gives this eggless cake structure. Be sure to stir the batter for the full 60 strokes to activate it. Arrange apricot halves, cut side up, on top of the cake batter. Bake for 30 minutes. During the final 2 minutes of baking time, whisk apricot preserves and 1 teaspoon of hot water in a small bowl. Remove cake from oven. Brush cake (not apricot halves) with apricot preserve mixture. Return cake to oven and bake until lightly golden and a wooden pick in the center comes out clean, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the cake cool for 10 minutes. Remove the sides of the pan and let the cake cool completely on a wire rack, for about 30 minutes Print