Description
Persian Love Cake is a delicate and aromatic almond cake infused with cardamom, lemon zest, rosewater, and vanilla. This moist and tender cake is topped with a tangy lemon glaze, crunchy pistachios, and fragrant dried rose petals, making it a perfect treat for special occasions or a sophisticated dessert.
Ingredients
Scale
Cake Batter
- 300 g or 1 ½ cup fine granulated sugar
- Zest of 2 lemons
- 170 g or ¾ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 2 teaspoons ground cardamom
- 1 teaspoon rosewater
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 50 g or ¼ cup flavorless oil
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt (halve if using table salt)
- 3 large eggs
- 145 g or 1 ¼ cup almond flour (not ground almonds, not almond meal)
- 195 g or 1 ½ cups cake flour, sifted
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 120 g or ½ cup kefir or buttermilk
Lemon Glaze
- 260 g or 2 cups powdered sugar
- 3-5 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon rosewater
Topping
- Pistachios, chopped (for topping)
- Dried rose petals (for topping)
Instructions
- Prepare the Cake Pans: Preheat your oven to 325 F. Butter and flour two 8 inch round cake pans or alternatively use a baking spray to grease them thoroughly.
- Mix Sugar and Lemon Zest: Place the sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Over the sugar, zest two lemons and rub the zest into the sugar with your fingers until the texture feels like wet sand, releasing the fragrant oils.
- Add Butter, Oil, and Flavorings: Add the softened butter, flavorless oil, ground cardamom, rosewater, vanilla extract, and salt to the sugar mixture. Attach the paddle attachment and beat on low speed, gradually increasing to medium, until the mixture is light and airy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Incorporate Eggs: With the mixer running on medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, allowing 20-30 seconds between each addition. Scrape down the bowl as needed and beat until the batter is smooth and homogeneous.
- Add Dry Ingredients and Kefir: Turn mixer to low speed and gradually add almond flour, sifted cake flour, and baking powder. As the mixer runs, slowly pour in the kefir or buttermilk. Mix just until combined to avoid overworking the batter.
- Divide and Smooth Batter: Evenly divide the batter between the two prepared cake pans. Smooth the tops using a spatula. The cakes will bake fairly flat but smoothing helps them bake evenly.
- Bake the Cakes: Place the pans in the preheated oven and bake for about 25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool the Cakes: Remove the cakes from the oven and let them cool in the pans for 5 minutes. Then, turn them out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Trim and Assemble: Once fully cooled, use a cake slicer or bread knife to level off any doming on the tops of the cakes. The trimmed pieces (the "hats") can be enjoyed as a snack.
- Prepare the Lemon Glaze: In a small bowl, whisk powdered sugar with lemon juice and rosewater until smooth and pourable. Adjust lemon juice to achieve desired consistency.
- Glaze and Decorate: Pour or brush the lemon glaze over the cooled cakes. Sprinkle with chopped pistachios and dried rose petals for an elegant finish.
Notes
- The use of almond flour rather than almond meal is important for the cake’s delicate texture.
- If you don’t have kefir or buttermilk, you can make a substitute by adding 1 tablespoon lemon juice to ½ cup milk and letting it sit for 10 minutes.
- To achieve the best flavor, use fresh lemon zest and quality rosewater.
- Make sure not to overmix after adding flour to keep the cake tender.
- The leftover cake trimmings (“hats”) make a delicious snack with tea or coffee.
- Store the finished cake refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 3 days to maintain freshness.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (1/8 of cake)
- Calories: 380 kcal
- Sugar: 30 g
- Sodium: 180 mg
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated Fat: 9 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 6 g
- Cholesterol: 95 mg
