Almond Amaretto Bundt Cake

Recipe by Molly Bolton

Perfectly sweet, tender, and a bit boozy, this Almond Amaretto Bundt Cake deserves center stage at your next holiday gathering. Almond, amaretto, and a touch of orange zest make this a festive, elegant, and comforting dessert that won’t disappoint. This recipe uses the reverse creaming method to make the cake batter, which is an easy way to ensure a perfectly soft, tender, and moist cake. And as impressive as this cake tastes and looks, you don’t have to tell anyone how easy it was to make. (We won’t tell either!)

Ingredients

For the almond amaretto cake:

2 cups granulated sugar

Zest of 2 oranges

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, spoon and leveled*

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt, kosher

1 cup butter, unsalted, softened, and cut into pats

1/2 cup whole milk, room temperature

3/4 cup sour cream, room temperature

4 eggs, large, room temperature

3 tablespoons amaretto liqueur

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract

Sugared cranberries and rosemary for garnish

For the amaretto glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt, kosher

1 tablespoon amaretto liqueur

1 tablespoon milk, plus more as needed 

Directions

To make the almond amaretto cake:

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Add the sugar and orange zest to the bowl of a stand mixer and rub together with your fingers until the zest is evenly distributed and fragrant. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt to the bowl and whisk to combine.

Attach the paddle attachment to your stand mixer. Add the pats of butter to the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until the butter is incorporated and the mixture resembles damp sand, about 1 to 2 minutes. Next, add the milk and mix on low speed to incorporate. (At this point, the batter will look like cookie dough). Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.

Add the sour cream, eggs, amaretto, vanilla extract, and almond extract to a large glass measuring cup or bowl and whisk to combine. Add the wet ingredients to the batter in 3 separate additions, mixing on low speed after each addition, stopping when the ingredients are just combined. Be careful not to overmix. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, and fold the batter a few times to ensure all the ingredients are evenly incorporated.

Generously grease a 10- to 12-cup Bundt pan with nonstick spray, preferably one containing flour. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Firmly tap the pan on the counter several times to remove any air bubbles. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until a wooden skewer or cake tester inserted in the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the amaretto glaze:

Add the powdered sugar, kosher salt, amaretto, and 1 tablespoon milk to a small bowl and whisk to combine. Add more milk, 1 teaspoon at a time, until the glaze reaches a thick, drizzling consistency.

Pour glaze over the cooled cake. Garnish with sugared cranberries and rosemary, if desired. 

Notes

*How to measure flour using the spoon and level method: If you don’t have a kitchen scale to measure flour by weight, use the spoon and level method for the most accurate measurement. First, loosen the flour in the canister or bag by fluffing it with a fork. Next, spoon the flour into your measuring cup until it’s full. Then, holding the cup over the canister or bag of flour, use the back of a knife to level off the flour.