These little beauties are everything indulgent and sweet! Cherry and almond is an ultimate classic and these are super easy to make any day of the week!
For Christmas I was given the Great British Bake Off 2020 calendar and this was was recipe for January and what better way to start the year. Okay so they're not going to fit into your new healthy eating January diet but everyone deserves a treat now and then! :)
I've altered the recipe slightly to my taste as I didn't want them to be too almondy, but you could add a 1/2 tsp of almond essence if you prefer a stronger almond taste.
Let me know if you give this recipe a go and tag me on social media. Use the hashtag #toptierbakery
Ingredients
200g Caster Sugar
200g Butter or Margarine
4 Medium Eggs
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
75g Ground Almonds
175g Self-Raising Flour
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
100ml Whole Milk
200g Glace Cherries (rinsed and dried cut into quarters)
25g Flaked Almonds
Icing Sugar for dusting
Method:
Step 1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/150°C Fan and line a 23cm square cake tin.
Step 2. Beat together the caster sugar and butter until light and creamy.
Step 3. Beat in each of the eggs one at a time and add the vanilla extract.
Step 4. Carefully fold in the ground almonds, self-raising flour and baking powder and then stir in the whole milk. Mix in half of the grace cherries.
Step 5. Carefully spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and add the leftover cherries and flaked almonds on top.
Step 6. Bake the cake for around 60 minutes. The cake will be baked when golden brown and a skewer comes out clean when inserted into the middle.
Step 7. Allow the cake to cool in the tin for 15 minutes then cool fully on a cooling rack. Once completely cool, cut into 12 pieces and sprinkle with icing sugar.
Store in an air tight container and they will last for around 3-4 days. If you can resist them for that long!! :)
