ALMOND CAKE WITH RASPBERRY BUTTERCREAM

Do you like cake? As I thought about well-known women bakers, Betty Crocker immediately came to mind. You probably grew up with her cookbooks and we all know her from the baking aisle. So, who is Betty Crocker? Well, in 1921, Gold Medal Flour placed an ad in the Saturday Evening Post encouraging people to complete a puzzle for a prize. Thousands sent in the puzzle accompanied by baking questions and confectionary concerns. To personalize responses with a female voice, Ms. Crocker was born. Her popularity soared mid-century as women wanted a bright, smart, and encouraging champion they could relate to and rely on for guidance and inspiration.

Betty was known for consistent, easy, and delicious recipes, and who doesn’t need that? One of my favorite books, I’ll Bring the Cake, features recipes using cake mix as the base with additional ingredients to create that “from scratch” taste, and the result impresses and delights. I hope you’ll enjoy my Almond Cake with Raspberry Buttercream as much as I do, made with – of course – Betty Crocker cake mix!

Recipe

Ingredients:

For the Almond Cake:

  • ¾ cup buttermilk (room temperature)

  • 2/3 cup sour cream (room temperature)

  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil

  • 4 egg whites (room temperature)

  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

  • 2 teaspoons almond extract

  • 1 box white cake mix

  • Shortening or non-stick cooking spray, for preparing pans

  • All-purpose flour, for dusting pans

For the Raspberry Buttercream:

  • 1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter

  • ¼ cup heavy cream (plus more if needed)

  • 1 ounce freeze-dried raspberries, pulsed to a fine powder

  • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

  • 1 tablespoon raspberry emulsion (optional)

  • Pinch of salt

  • 7 to 8 cups powdered sugar

Instructions:

For the Almond Cake

Preheat oven to 325F, then prep three 6-inch round cake pans with a swipe of shortening and dusting of flour to prevent sticking. 

In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, oil, eggs, vanilla, and almond extract until thoroughly combined. Sift in the cake mix and whisk until just combined. Do not overmix. Split the batter evenly among the prepared pans.

Bake for 25 to 27 minutes, until the center is baked through. Let the cake cool in the pan for about a minute before flipping out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Wrap and freeze the cakes before assembly.

For the Raspberry Buttercream

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until it’s light and fluffy. Add the heavy cream, raspberry powder, vanilla, raspberry emulsion (if using), and salt and beat again until combined, then scrape down the sides with a spatula.

With the mixer on low speed, add the powdered sugar about ½ cup at a time. The buttercream will be thick. Add a touch more of heavy cream to thin it out if needed and then flip the mixer to high speed and beat until the buttercream is lighter in color and texture, about 2 minutes.

Assemble and Decorate

Add buttercream between each layer and then add around the entire cake. Garnish with slivered almonds and fresh raspberries.