French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze is sweet, fragrant, rich, soft, chewy and strongly almond-flavored. Extremely fast, easy, and perfect for a brunch, shower, or anytime you need a smaller-sized cake that’s both easy and unique.
Almond extract lends the most wonderfully rich, nutty, and sweetly perfumed flavor to anything it touches.
And it touched this unique cake plenty in the three tablespoons I used.
French almond cakes are typically rectangular little cakes that have a firm, crusty exterior and a moist, soft interior. They’re also known as financiers because traditionally they look like gold bars. But since no one I know has financier molds to make individual cakes, one 9-inch cake is my solution.
It’s one of the easiest and fastest cakes I’ve ever made, and goes from cupboard to pan to oven in less than five minutes. Just one bowl and a whisk is all you need.
French almond cakes are typically made without chemical leaveners such as baking powder or soda, and rely only on eggs for lift. This creates a dense and moist cake, with an interior that resembles the interior of Cookie Bars.
Some recipes use almond meal or almond flour, but I didn’t want to run the risk of weighing down the leavener-less cake with nut-based flour and used trusty all-purpose.
I don’t like actual nuts in baked goods, but extracts are fair game. Biting into nuts in a soft cookie or tender piece of cake is as bad as biting into eggshells. Crunchy, they catch you off guard, and just don’t belong.
So I’m especially grateful for almond extract to give this cake all the almond flavor it has going.
If you’ve never bought almond extract, it’s sold near the vanilla extract in the grocery store. At my grocery store, a one-ounce bottle of store-brand real almond extract was $2.99. Imitation almond extract was also $2.99, so I went with real and happily used almost half the little bottle in the recipe and it’s the star of the show.
The cake is bursting at the seams with sweet almond flavor. Two tablespoons of extract are used in the cake batter, and one tablespoon in the glaze. I wanted to make sure I knew this was an almond cake, not a cake masquerading as one, and used the extract liberally.
It’s traditional to top the cake with jam or slivered almonds, and I used apricot-peach jam mixed with cream cheese, draped over the top. I could happily smear that mixture on everything I see. The tang of the cream cheese cuts some of the sweetness from the jam.
My husband especially loved this unique little cake. It reminds me of a giant chewy sugar or snickerdoodle cookie infused with almond, and baked in a cake pan.
It has chewy edges like a blondie bar or snickerdoodle cookie bar, while the interior is soft, dense, rich, and moist.
While it was baking, my husband came out of his office and asked me what that heavenly smell was. Almond extract is like sweet perfume that permeates the air in the most lovely way.
It’s sweet, light, and feels like spring. I think it would be perfect for a brunch, shower, or any time that you need a smaller-sized, fast, and very easy little cake.
And I really want to eat eat the glaze by the spoonful, especially the little chunks of apricot that peek through.
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French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze
French almond cakes are known for their chewy edges with soft, dense, rich, and moist interiors. There’s no chemical leaveners used in the cake, and it reminds me of a pan of cookie bars. It’s sweet, fragrant, rich, soft, chewy and strongly almond-flavored. Extremely fast, easy, and perfect for a brunch, shower, or anytime you need a smaller-sized cake that’s both easy and unique.
Ingredients
Cake
- 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick + half of 1 stick)
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 2 tablespoons almond extract
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds, optional for sprinkling (I did not use)
Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze
- 3/4 cup apricot-peach jam (or a pineapple, peach, apricot or favorite jam)
- 1/4 cup cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon almond extract
Instructions
- Cake – Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9-inch cake round with floured cooking spray, or grease and flour the pan; set aside.
- In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 75 seconds. Allow butter to cool momentarily so you don’t scramble the egg.
- Add all remaining cake ingredients (except flour) and whisk until smooth. Stir in the flour until just combined; don’t overmix. Turn batter out into prepared pan. Top with optional slivered almonds.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until top is golden and set, and edges will be firmer and pulling away slightly from sides of pan. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter.
- Allow cake to cool in pan on a wire rack for about 15 minutes. Turn cake out onto rack and allow it to cool completely. While cake cools, make the glaze.
- Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze – Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until combined, or beat with a mixer until combined. Spread glaze on top of cake (don’t not have to be completely cooled), slice and serve. Cake will keep airtight in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I refrigerated it because of the cream cheese, glaze but if omitting or using another kind of glaze, cake can be stored at airtight at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 312Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 66mgSodium: 31mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 1gSugar: 23gProtein: 4g
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Have you tried French almond cake or financiers before? Almond extract? Nuts in desserts?
I’ve never been to France or had the real thing, but I’d be happy to go on a taste-testing trip in the name of field research as soon as someone wants to buy my airline ticket.
I bake quite a bit and this one a select group ask for it over and over ( mostly guys?) A true stand out on the crowded potluck dessert table. Sometimes more almond less vanilla and other times I switch it around. Thank you!
That’s great to hear that this is a crowd favorite and that it stands out on various dessert tables!
I just made this for my almond-loving husband (I’m not as much of a fan of the marzipan-flavor, but it was a special treat for him). He said it was his favorite dessert I’ve ever made for him! I didn’t even make the glaze as he doesn’t love cream cheese frosting. And I’m thrilled because it was one of the easiest desserts I’ve ever made!!
That’s always awesome when a super easy dessert as a huge success! Glad he loved it!
Averie,
I made the french almond cake, and it turned out delicious. I have a question and concern. Two days after leaving the cake in an airtight container at room temperature, the texture changed and became rather doughy, almost like a thick pancake. It was tough to cut through with a knife. What did I do wrong? Did I stir the flour too much? Thanks, Regine
The times I’ve made this cake we went through it pretty fast so can’t say for sure what happened with your. Maybe it was a bit under-baked and then the texture changed over time? Or maybe over-baked and the texture changed? Can’t say for sure what exactly happened in your situation since there are a lot of variables. Over-mixing the batter can be a culprit for cakes turning doughy and tough b/c the gluten gets overly developed. That could be it, too. Thanks for trying the recipe and glad it tasted great!
I have made this several times (with peach instead of apricot glaze) and it is gone in a flash.  It takes longer for the butter and eggs to reach room temperature then it does to make.  Taste like I went to a lot of trouble to make it and it is so simple but delicious. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks for trying the recipe so many times and that it’s always a hit and disappears quickly! Have a great weekend!
Delicious! I’ve made this several times, after a friend made it (or something close to it) for me. I’m making it for a Cookie Swap – do you know if it freezes well (make-ahead)?
I think you could freeze the unglazed cookie cake and then glaze it right before the swap. But I haven’t personally tried so just taking a guess. Glad you’re a fan of this one and have made it a few times!
I t sound so simple to make, so i decided to make it! it is in the oven as we speak. I will let you know how it turns out!
Thank you!
Awesome – would love to hear how it turned out!
OMG! I just made this and I haven’t tasted the cake yet but I am putting the extra glaze on crackers and tasting it and it is to die for delicious!!!
Thanks for trying this recipe and I agree, the glaze is super tasty! Any kind of jelly/jam with cream cheese is a winner :)
Late posting on this one, but I just wanted to say that when you say five minutes, you mean five minutes! My goodness, never had such a decadent in texture cake from so little effort! Loved! And so did my last minute guests lol (hence why I needed a five minute prep dessert!!)
Glad you loved it and it was such a hit!
Hi Averie,
I made this cake yesterday. My family LOVED it. The almond flavor really came out strong. *I’m gonna try to make it with a raspberry glaze . I also made the softbatch Funfetti Sugar Cookies. Quite lovely. :) Hope u had a nice weekend.
So glad you tried this cake and enjoyed it! I bet it would be great with a raspberry glaze! And so glad you tried the Funfetti cookies, too! Sounds like you’ve had a great baking weekend :)
hello…i just loved ur recipe n would like to make it…but can u pls tell me how much is 1 cup in terms of grams for ur recipes…n also can u pls tell me wht can i substitued cream cheese with…we don’t get any cream cheese in the small town i stay…plsssss help…thank u…
Please google for a recipe conversion tool from cups to grams.
Cream cheese – You could simply just make a butter-based glaze instead.
hello again…thanks for ur reply but i have google conversion from cups to grams but there r many websites with different measurements…can u pls tell me ur measurements for recipes n also u said butter based glaze…can u pls tell me how to make butter glaze as am new to this techniques…will be waiting for ur reply..thank once again… :-)
http://allrecipes.com/howto/cup-to-gram-conversions/
Melt butter, add confectioners’ sugar, whisk until smooth. That’s your glaze.
Cake and cookies at the same time! I have to try this :)
Lovely work, Averie! Would you be happy to link it in to the current Food on Friday which is creating a collection of recipes using apricots or nectarines? This is the link . I do hope to see you there. There are already quite a lot of links for you to check out. Cheers
Oh goodness, this looks DELICIOUS. I LOVE everything about this cake! The ingredients sound as inviting as the colours/photos look. I had featured u in the post of Top 7 Sweet Cakes for Mother’s Day on AllFreshRecipes,Pay close attention to ur more Eats!
Thanks for the feature! I appreciate it and if you try this cake, you will love it!
I’m hoping to try this for my dad’s birthday! I’m just really excited by how dense this looks. Just wondering how you managed to make your glaze stay so pretty on the cake! <3 My previous affair with glazing a cake turned out to be rather disastrous despite cooling my cake for 45 minutes. :( Am I cooling it wrong or am I making the wrong glaze?
This is the easiest cake I’ve ever glazed. Just pretty much slap it on with a spoon and smooth it out with the back of a spatula. This glaze is NOT a fussy glaze. Some are highly fussy; this isn’t one of them!
So. Amazing. I made this in my cast iron skillet and baked it for 33 minutes. Perfect. The apricot glaze really takes it to the next level. Thanks for sharing. Happy Mother’s Day to me!
I’m so glad to hear you made it and that you enjoyed it! I agree that the apricot glaze takes it to the next level. And good thinking just using a cast iron!
I’ve been looking for an almond extract many times, but could not find it. Could I skip it or better, replace it with something?
How about Gran Marnier or a fancy liquer? Vanilla, of course. But the flavor of this cake is truly dependent on the almond extract. If you sub with something else, the cake won’t be the cake I made; it’ll still be good, just not an ALMOND cake if you skip the ALMOND extract. No way around that one!
Averie,
I’m going to make this recipe to celebrate my parents anniversary, but am confused over the almond extract. Maybe it’s “pregnancy brain” kicking in or something, but isn’t 1 oz = 2 T? But you only bought one 1oz bottle of almond extract and using 3T of it in the recipe was using about half the bottle? I just want to make sure I buy enough extract and don’t mess this up – it looks amazing!
Thanks for clarifying =)
Sophie
I used 3 tablespoons. 2 in the batter and 1 in the frosting. A one-ounce bottle will be fine; you are confusing liquid and dry weight measurements in your mind; they are not always the same, ie. 6 oz of milk and 6 oz of powdered sugar would look very different. Don’t overthink it :) Just add your 2 and 1 tbsp’s respectively, and you’ll be fine.
Thanks! The liquid-dry thing with oz does have a tendency to throw me off and I didn’t even think about that! :-)
Yes, you were thinking of butter, where 1 ounce is 2 tbsp. With something like extract (or liquids) all that math & rules go out the window :) I expect a full report now how this cake turns out for you! :)
Oh, this is a mouth-watering dessert! I love almond desserts, this is wonderful :)
I LOVE cakes leavened only with eggs. They are really something special. I also love almond extract but it’s so super powerful that I’ve never used more than 1teaspoon and the flavor still really permeates.
Knowing you, you’d love this cake! And ahhh, well, 3 Tbsp, yes, you KNOW it’s an almond cake, not a cake pretending to be one!
LOVE almond extract! Once I stayed at a B&B and they put almond extract in their orange juice, which sounds so weird and random, but it was amazing. These photos are stunning–I want a slice!
Sounds DELICIOUS!!! I bet that would make a great room spray or body spray scent, too!
Thanks for the pic compliments. When I first took them, I almost didnt post this b/c I hated them. But they grew on me.
this looks amazing!
I love financiers, and this cake twist on those delicious bars is seriously genius! I never thought of doing that, instead. Beautiful!!
Thanks & I cam totally see you being into finaciers, along with those beautiful macarons you make!
A super dense cake packed with flavor – so chewy, soft, and moist. I can just *see* all of those components in the photos. Averie, this is such a wonderful recipe! You are never shy with adding extracts and I love that about your recipes. Almond extract is overlooked a lot, but I love using it in sugar cookies and the like. My mom used to make these incredible almond apricot macaroons filled with almond extract. They are so, so good and this recipe reminds me of them. That glaze looks incredible. And there is so much of it per bite. This puts me in the mood for spring and summer and sunshine!
Thanks, Sally, this was the cake I emailed you about thinking it was going to bomb, but I was going to post it anyway. Glad I did b/c it’s done better than I thought! Your moms almond-apricot macs sound amazing. She sounds like QUITE the cook!
I’ve been on the hunt for more ways to use my almond extract (I have a HUGE bottle). This cake… need to make it!
Wish I did – I blew thru my little bottle lickity split!
I love almond flavor in cake. It is absolutely delicious and honestly, I forgot all about it! This cake reminds me of something that I would envision royalty eating at tea time! And your plates look like something they would eat off of! They are gorgeous, as are your photos. This cake looks delicious and I hope to have an opportunity to bring it to a bridal shower or something of the sort, soon. This makes me want to dab a little almond extract behind my ears tomorrow for perfume! :-)
that glaze looks to die for!!
Mmm almond extract to the max baby! This cake looks fabulous and love how quick it is! Apricot Cream Cheese glaze….drooool!
YES, please and thank you, Averie…I’ll take the whole thing! This is incredible!
Oh! I will have to make this ASAP! Maybe for our Mother’s Day afternoon tea party!! I’ve made Italian almond cake a few times but it is a bit denser than this one. Looks fabulous!
I couldnt imagine any cake being denser..this baby is practically like a cookie-bar. Which I love! I would love your cake then!
Averie, I am nutty about almond extract as well. It is so dreamy to use in baking. LOVE to blend it with vanilla and even add almond extract to my yeast dough for Christmas Stollen–even though there is almond paste rolled into the dough in generous dabs! Great solution, too, with the 9-inch cake pan! Pinning… xo
Thanks for the pins on this post and the Raisinet bars! And adding almond extract to your yeast doughs sounds scrumptious!
I love almond flavored cakes and this one is so lovely! It’s just the kind of dainty treat that I would love to serve to my mother on Mother’s Day!
This looks amazing, Averie!!! Love just everything about the flavors and textures of this cake!!!
Yummy, its 3:00 and I need a snack!
This is gorgeous! Looks (and tastes, I’m sure) so fancy, but you make it so simple!
Averie this is gorgeous! I love it.
I’m not one for cake, but I’m all about the frosting. If these were made in cookie form, I’d eat them by the handful. In fact, I could see this as a sandwich cookie. I do LOVE apricots. With white chocolate??!
Your writing in this post is fantastic, by the way. Almost lyrical!
Oh wow~ these are stunning! I would love them with espresso too. Love that almond extract. Great recipe as always Averie! xx
I’m not much a fan of apricots, yet I’m clawing at the screen for a taste of that luscious cream cheese glaze. A-MA-ZIIIING, Averie. I want a spoonful! (Or bowlful). These cake looks totally gorgeous and perfect for a Mother’s Day brunch. Except my mom is allergic to almonds, so maybe I’ll make it for her in spirit but really just eat the whole thing myself :)
One of my favorite smells in the entire world is an almond extract-laden dessert baking in the oven. You’re right – it’s absolute heaven! And this cake looks fabulous.
This cake looks SO incredibly good. The apricot cream cheese glaze sounds like the perfect icing on top!
Thanks, Marcie!
Averie, we should really get together and bake someday! I looove almond extract – it usually steps in for the vanilla in a lot of my recipes. Also, your plates are beautiful!! xo
I can totally see you into almond extract. Being that you love lemon, I am not surprised that you love this as well! Both very distinct flavors and I knew you’d love it!
I just bought a bottle of almond extract (I’m trying to develop a cake batter recipe) and I may just have to use it to make these!
You’re all set then & can make this!
So, so pretty! I love that glaze…gorgeous!
I don’t bake with almond extract enough! I love the fragrance – it’s like nothing else! This cake sounds amazing! Love the glaze idea! Pinning!!!
Thanks for the pin and yes, it had been way too long for me too that I baked with it!
This is a beauty, Averie! Makes me want to have a tea party. :) And I LOVE your plates!
Thrift store – lucky finds! Thank you :)
I bet some almond emulsion would take this over the edge. You could use the base of this recipe for so many different flavors.
Yes the base is versatile, indeed!
I looooove this cake. I’m all about almonds in everything, especially extract! I bet this smelled amazing!
Crazy good amazing! I need a perfume like it, actually!
We call this Swedish Almond Cake in our home, and it’s phenomenal!!! LOVE the addition of the apricot cream cheese glaze!
Oh I saw some versions for “Swedish” almond cake rather than “French” and wasn’t quite sure of the differences and didn’t study them too much but glad to know you make something similar and love it! We do too!
I’m with you on the love for almond extract! It is so heavenly, but surprisingly controversial. I have met a lot of people who don’t like it. They are nuts.
But I totally can’t get with you on no nuts in cookies. Oh man. That is the best part! I love contrasts in textures. I have actually converted many of nut cookie protesters with my signature cookie. Maybe someday we will meet and I will try it out on you :)
This cake is absolutely gorgeous!
I am just not into marbles in my soft things! I do love love love texture; just not nuts. I wrote a cookbook about peanut butter! So I do love nuts, but not whole in anything soft. Just my thing :)
I don’t bake with the flavor of almond extract nearly enough! I, like you, don’t care for nuts in my baked goods – but nut flavors, I’m all about! This cake is so pretty with that apricot glaze! :)
Once again this looks super! I’m crazy for anything almond!
What’s not to love about this recipe? Almond extract is one of my favorite smells from the kitchen/pantry. And since you turned this into another fabulous one-bowl creation, I’m sold!
Thanks, Eva! One of my fave scents also!
Averie, this looks like the perfect Mother’s Day dessert! I also love how quick and easy it is to whip up!
That’s the best part: quick to whip up!
Averie, I am completely blown away by this post. This recipe looks absolutely incredible. Simple yet rich and delicious. And your pictures are gorgeous. They always are, but I’m loving the plates and how they pair so well with the cake. And that apricot cream cheese glaze? Omgosh, I need a slice on a pretty plate pronto!!
Lucky find at the thrift store with the plates…I have so many and on a rainy day, sometimes I just grab the right one for the mood, and it all falls into place. Other days…nothing falls into place. lol
This sounds like a wonderful summer dessert! The apricot cream cheese glaze sounds amazing!
Beautiful Averie!! I never would have though of this, but so need to try it!
I like that you used 3 TB of almond extract. Although some extracts can be overpowering (hello, peppermint!) I find myself often doubling the vanilla in recipes to really bring out the flavour. I don’t usually modify almond since I don’t use it as much but I sure think you’ve got the right idea here with 3 TB! That cake looks so pretty, guests would never know it’s go quick to bake!
I always double vanilla too :) And mint, NEVER!! Every time I make a recipe with mint extract, I write this big long disclaimer telling people DONT be tempted to double this like most of us do w/ vanilla; or you’ll be eating listerine brownies rather than mint brownies!
This is beautiful! And I LOVE those plates!!
Lucky thrift store finds…thank you!
I have not baked financiers but there’s always something new to try! I also don’t bake with nuts much – granola bars, granola and some fall based quick breads are about it. My family doesn’t like nuts (poor souls) and so I graciously omit them. I have to agree, I don’t know if I would like crunchy nuts in cake but I do know I would love all that almond extract. Your description of a cookie type pie with soft middle and crunchy edges? Too much! And then the glaze with cream cheese and jam combined? The glaze is pure creative genius (really, I’m going to make it and just eat by the spoonful) and I’ll probably just make the cake so my house will smell good!
The glaze would be great on bagels or toast…I mean, jelly + cream cheese, can’t go wrong! Glad to hear I’m not the only no-nuts in my baked goods!
I fell in love with financiers recently and I think I would adore them even more in cake form! That almond flavor is really the best.
They were so good in cake form…and way easier to deal with :)
This is so interesting! Financiers are one of my very favorite treats! I love Dorie Greenspan’s recipe from Paris Sweets and make it all the time for breakfast when I have egg whites around (I like to stuff mine with chestnut cream). It is insanely delicious. And I also love almond extract. Your cake is so creative and sounds fantastic!
Wow, that Dorie version sounds incredible. And chestnut cream…wow!
Apricot and almond with that dense interior looks delicious! I’ve never had a French almond cake but I’m a fan of almond extract. I think it’s one of those things people like or don’t. As for the price of real vs imitation–there’s no difference here either..but that’s certainly not the case with vanilla! I’ve had some almond cookies from a local bakery…they’re very soft and taste great but are on the thin/flimsy side.
Oh you’d love the texture here. Not at all flimsy. So dense and almost like a cookie bar; more so than a cake. I wish vanilla real vs. imitation prices were the same; don’t we all. Begs the question WHY would anyone buy imitation if they can buy real for the same price? Headshake.
I fell in love with almond extract years ago and find it intoxicatingly good! I even bring bottles of the real thing when I go to the US, since I only find imitation flavor here. A sensational cake, love almonds and apricots! And financiers can be made in mini muffin molds or similar.
Good thinking with the muffin molds! But alas, slapping the batter in one big pan was so my style for this rather than getting all fussy with it :)
This looks delicious! And my boyfriend loves financiers… perhaps this could be an alternative birthday cake idea for him!
Your boyf has good taste! I don’t think my husband would know what a financiers was if it hit him over the head :) But he loved this cake and I explained the whole saga behind it. I think it would make a fab bday cake (and seriously takes 5 mins to toss together!)
I’m not the biggest fan of almond extract but I think I need to give it another chance with this gorgeous cake. Oh and that glaze – SWOON!
And thank you for making my Salted Caramel Pretzel Blondies. You did them PROUD girl. Wow. So pretty!
And I am not the biggest fan of almonds; they’re fine but peanuts/PB will always trump almonds/AB but almond extract; I want to drink it!
Almond extract is intoxicating. Sometimes I want to eat my soap bar,it’s so good. But I think this cake would be tastier. :)
I almost wrote that in my post…that I want a body spray, perfume, or something!! with it. Ages ago I had some conditioner that was faintly scented with it but I swear I need to infuse my current conditioner with some. Or how about coconut oil infused with it. Swoon. :)
South of France Sweet Almond (bar) soap. It smells heavenly!
Thanks!!