French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze

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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 thatโ€™s both easy and unique.

French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze averiecooks.com

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 Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze averiecooks.com

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.

French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze averiecooks.com

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.

French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze averiecooks.com

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.

French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze averiecooks.com

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.

French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze averiecooks.com

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.

French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze averiecooks.com

French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze - Fancy name for a super easy cake that tastes like a giant snickerdoodle cookie!

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 thatโ€™s both easy and unique.

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4.58 from 14 votes

French Almond Cookie Cake with Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze

By Averie Sunshine
French almond cakes are known for their chewy edges with soft, dense, rich, and moist interiors. Thereโ€™s no chemical leaveners used in the cake, and it reminds me of a pan of cookie bars. Itโ€™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 thatโ€™s both easy and unique.
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Servings: 12
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Ingredients  

Cake

  • ยพ cup unsalted butter, melted (1 stick + half of 1 stick)
  • 2 large eggs, at room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • ยผ cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 2 tablespoons almond extract
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 ยฝ cups all-purpose flour
  • ยฝ cup toasted slivered almonds, optional for sprinkling (I did not use)

Apricot Cream Cheese Glaze

  • ยพ cup apricot-peach jam, or a pineapple, peach, apricot or favorite jam
  • ยผ cup cream cheese, softened
  • 1 tablespoon almond extract

Instructions 

  • Cake โ€“ 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 donโ€™t scramble the egg.
  • Add all remaining cake ingredients (except flour) and whisk until smooth. Stir in the flour until just combined; donโ€™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 โ€“ย Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until combined, or beat with a mixer until combined. Spread glaze on top of cake (donโ€™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

Serving: 1, Calories: 312kcal, Carbohydrates: 36g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 16g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g, Cholesterol: 66mg, Sodium: 31mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 23g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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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.

4.58 from 14 votes (11 ratings without comment)

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Comments

  1. 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!

  2. Averie, this looks like the perfect Mother’s Day dessert! I also love how quick and easy it is to whip up!

  3. 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!!

    1. 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

  4. This sounds like a wonderful summer dessert! The apricot cream cheese glaze sounds amazing!

  5. 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!

    1. 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!

  6. 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!

    1. 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!

  7. 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.

  8. 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!

  9. 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.

    1. 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.

  10. 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.

    1. 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 :)

  11. This looks delicious! And my boyfriend loves financiers… perhaps this could be an alternative birthday cake idea for him!

    1. 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!)

  12. 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!

    1. 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!

  13. Almond extract is intoxicating. Sometimes I want to eat my soap bar,it’s so good. But I think this cake would be tastier. :)

    1. 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. :)