Raspberry Almond Cake

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup softened butter
• 7 ounces almond paste
• ½ cup  of sugar (increase to ¾ cup if serving as a dessert, as opposed to a brunch cake)
• 5 eggs
• ½ cup of ricotta cheese
• ⅓ cup of milk
• 2 cups of flour
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 6 ounces fresh raspberries
• 2 tablespoon sliced almonds, raw/unsalted

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350F  Spray a 10" angel food pan with baking spray and distribute well with a pastry brush and set aside.
2. In a small bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk to combine and then set aside.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer combine the butter, the almond paste, and sugar. Beat on high until fluffy, scraping down the bowl as needed.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating in between each addition. Add ricotta cheese, beat, and milk, and beat until smooth. At this point, the batter will look like it’s separating. That’s OK. It will come back together after you add the dry ingredients.
5. Add the dry ingredients in thirds, beating in between each addition. The batter will be heavy and dense, but not to worry cake will be light and fluffy!
6. Transfer batter to the pan with an ice cream scoop to assure equal distribution. Smooth out with a spatula. Top with raspberries and almonds.
7. Bake at 350F(175C) for 55mins-1 hour or until the cake is slightly golden brown on top and risen.  Allow to cool completely and then remove from pan, dust with powdered sugar, and serve!

NOTES

This cake is really best eaten the day it is baked. But if you must make it a day ahead. Allow it to cool and then keep it in the pan, covered with foil. Then reheat at 300F(150C) for 15 minutes and then serve. The reheating will freshen it up.