I baked the almond tutti frutti cake purely as an excuse to use marzipan in the batter. I wanted to live in almond heaven! The almond and sugar paste melts, creating pockets of intensely nutty flavor, giving the cake a rich, luscious touch quite reminiscent of my mawa cake.
And even though it is a simple pound cake (made from an upside-down tin that had been languishing in my cupboards for god knows how long), somehow the studded gems of candied fruits elevate it into something celebratory.
You don’t have to wait for a special occasion or festivities to bake it. It’s easy enough to try on any day of the week.
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How to make almond tutti frutti cake
What is tutti frutti?
Tutti Frutti, or as it is officially called tutti i Frutti, literally means ‘all fruits.’ It’s a confectionery made using candied fruits in different flavors. Here, in India, it’s an extremely popular ingredient for cakes, and ice creams and is made by mixing artificial flavoring into raw papaya.
How to make almond tutti frutti cake?
I used my eggless tutti frutti cake recipe as the base, adding an ingredient here and subtracting an ingredient there. You don’t have to worry about not incorporating an egg because the cake rose beautifully and was perfectly moist.
- Begin by mixing almond milk and vinegar. Keep it aside for a few minutes.
- Meanwhile, sift whole wheat flour and all-purpose flour with salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
- Add raw sugar to the dry ingredients.
- Whisk coconut oil, vanilla extract, almond extract, and rose water into the milk/vinegar mixture.
- Stir the wet ingredients into the dry gently until they are just combined.
Baking the tutti frutti and marzipan cake
- Cut the marzipan into small pieces and set them aside.
- Toss the tutti frutti in a teaspoon of all-purpose flour.
- Now, fold in the flour-dusted tutti frutti along with marzipan into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the greased tin and then bake.
A few almond cake serving ideas
A dusting of icing sugar is the easiest and quickest way to serve the almond tutti frutti cake. A more decadent option (and a way to include more almond flavor) is to drizzle a thick glaze.
How to make a cake glaze?
A basic cake glaze is made with powdered sugar and a liquid. For this recipe, I mixed almond milk and almond extract with icing sugar.
Pour a little bit of the thick glaze on the cake and immediately sprinkle some dried rose petals, roasted almond flakes, and tutti-frutti on top.
What else can you use in the almond tutti frutti cake?
Flour: this recipe uses a mix of wholewheat and all-purpose flours. But you can switch it with whole wheat or all-purpose all the way. Or you could use a combination of buckwheat and whole wheat, buckwheat and all-purpose, or all three.
Vinegar: don’t have apple cider vinegar? Use the one you do have or even lemon juice to curdle the milk.
Sugar: raw, palm, cane, coconut, or regular white sugar – all are great options here. A heads-up, the cake color will change based on which one you use.
Oil: any neutral-tasting oil will work in this recipe, or you can substitute it with butter.
Milk: for a vegan option, stick to coconut oil and plant-based milk. If that’s not a concern, regular milk is perfect.
Tutti-frutti: you can leave it out but, obviously, it is essential to the recipe, playing a leading role along with the marzipan. Try dried fruits to get that extra punch of flavor and texture if you can’t get your hands on tutti-frutti. Dried raisins (any kind), cranberries, apricots, pineapple, or mango will fit.
Cake recipe hacks and FAQs
- Don’t overmix the batter. Stir just enough to combine, and the cake will be soft and fluffy.
- As tutti-frutti has weight, it can sink to the bottom of the batter. Coating them in flour prevents that from happening.
- Let the cake cool before you decorate it with glaze and serve.
Is the almond extract or rose water essential to the cake?
No, of course not. These are optional, although I would passionately recommend them. They lend a spectrum of flavors to the cake.
How much sugar to add to the cake batter?
Tutti-frutti and marzipan are sweet. So, you have to be careful to not add too much sugar into the batter. Stick to the measurements given in the recipe, and the almond cake will be just the right amount of sweet.
Can you leave marzipan out?
Take the five minutes of effort to make marzipan at home. It’s ridiculously easy and will hold you in good stead for plenty of recipes. Or you can buy it from a store. But do use it. Words fail to describe the delicious pizzazz it brings to bakes.
Can you store almond tutti frutti cake?
It keeps fine in the refrigerator. It can easily be reheated in the microwave for a few seconds before serving.
Why will you love this almond tutti frutti cake recipe?
Marzipan
Marzipan
Marzipan
It will keep you coming back to the recipe. Again, and again, and again.
Take my word for it!
Some other recipes to try:
Almond Tutti Frutti Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup Almond milk You can use any milk you prefer
- 1 tbsp Vinegar You can use apple cider or white vinegar
- 1 cup Wholewheat flour
- 1 cup All-purpose flour
- 1.5 tsp Baking powder
- 1/2 tsp Baking soda
- 1/4 tsp Salt
- 1/2 cup Raw sugar
- 1/2 cup Coconut oil
- 1 tsp Rosewater
- 3/4 tsp Almond extract
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup Tutti frutti
- 1/2 cup Marzipan, cut into small cubes
Almond Glaze
- 1/4 cup Icing sugar
- 2 tbsp Almond milk You can use any milk you prefer
- 2-3 drops Almond extract
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180C. Grease and flour an 8" cake tin.
- In a small bowl, combine the almond milk and vinegar. Set aside for a few minutes.
- In a large bowl, sift together the wholewheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Stir in the raw sugar.
- In another bowl, whisk together the milk and vinegar mixture, coconut oil, rosewater, almond extract, and vanilla extract.
- Pour over the dry ingredients. Mix well.
- Toss the tutti frutti with 2 tsp of flour. Fold the tutti frutti and marzipan into the cake batter.
- Pour into the prepared pan. If you're not glazing the cake, you can decorate the top with some extra tutti frutti and almond flakes if you like.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes at 180C until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning it out on a cooling rack.
- Serve as is or sprnkle some icing sugar on top or glaze it with almond glaze.
Almond Glaze
- Mix together almond milk, icing sugar, and almond extract in a small bowl. Mix well to get a smooth, thick glaze.
- Pour this glaze over the cooled cake and immediately top with toasted almond flakes, tutti frutti, and dried rose petals. Let it set for 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Enjoy!
