Coconut-Lemon Almond Cake Recipe

Step 1

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350°F. Grease a 9-inch spring form pan with nonstick spray, line with parchment paper, and flour with almond flour.

Step 2

In a small bowl, combine the granulated sugar and zest 2 of the lemons. Rub the sugar and zest together to release the essential oils. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the lemon sugar to add to the egg whites.

Step 3

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and the remaining lemon sugar.

Step 4

Whisk until the yolks become thick and pale in color, about 1 minute. Whisk in the vanilla extract, the almond extract, and the salt and set aside.

Step 5

In the bowl of a standard electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or a bowl with a hand mixer), beat the 6 egg whites on medium speed until they become opaque, about 1 minute.

Step 6

Sprinkle in the reserved 2 tablespoons of lemon sugar, and continue to beat the egg whites until they hold high peaks, 3 to 4 minutes.

Step 7

With a flexible rubber spatula, stir in about one-quarter of the egg whites to the egg yolk mixture (no need to be gentle here).  Scrape the remaining egg whites over the yolks, and about half of the almond flour. Gently fold them into the yolks, but only partially.

Step 8

While the mixture still has a few streaks of white left, add the remaining almond flour and fold in, folding until you have a homogeneous batter.  Be gentle!

Step 9

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and shimmy until the batter is level.

Step 10

Bake the cake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is golden brown and springy to the touch. Let the hot cake cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then run a butter knife along the edges of the cake pan.

Step 11

Invert the cake pan onto the rack, remove the sides and bottom, and peel away the parchment paper. Turn the cake right side up and allow to cool completely.

Step 12

When ready to serve, spread the whipped coconut cream over the top of the cake and sprinkle with the toasted coconut. Cut into 12 slices and serve right away.