This lemon almond cake has a light crumb and a bright lemon flavor. The cake is just 4 ingredients and doesn’t contain any wheat flour, dairy, butter or oil. The cake can be made ahead of time and stores well.
A slice of cake on a small white plate

This cake is easy to prepare and makes a great simple cake to serve for afternoon tea, brunch, dessert and more.

Ingredients

  • Almond flour
  • Powdered sugar
  • Eggs
  • Lemon

Almond flour: This cake uses superfine blanched almond flour. Make sure to use superfine almond flour and not regular almond flour. Superfine almond flour has a much finer texture and will keep the cake crumb light.

Powdered sugar: The cake is sweetened with powdered sugar. The powdered sugar also helps the structure of the cake because powdered sugar contains a little starch. While the cake can be made with regular granular sugar, it will sink in the middle a little if you use granular sugar.

Eggs: Eggs provide the structure and produce a light crumb for the cake.

Lemon: The cake is flavored with lemon zest and lemon juice. Don’t leave out the lemon zest because it provides most of the lemon flavor for this cake.

How to Make Lemon Almond Cake

  • The eggs and powdered sugar are first beaten on high speed in a stand mixer for about 10 minutes until the eggs have more than tripled in volume and become thick and pale yellow. When you lift the beater, the mixture that ribbons down should be able to hold its form on top for several seconds before sinking back in.
  • Add in the lemon juice and zest and mix until just incorporated.
  • Fold in 1/3 of the almond flour gently. Then repeat with the next 1/3 and the final 1/3. The batter should still look very light and airy when you are done.Cake batter in a springform pan
  • Transfer the batter to your prepared cake pan. Bake for about 35 minutes or until the cake is browned on the surface and cooked through.
  • Allow the cake to cool fully before releasing the cake from the pan. If desired, you can dust the surface with powdered sugar and add fresh fruit or sliced almonds as garnish.

An almond cake dusted with powdered sugar and topped with lemon slices and sliced almonds

Expert Tips

  • This cake gets most of its lemon flavor from lemon zest. Adding too much lemon juice will make the cake texture gummy.
  • The cake uses superfine almond flour to produce a lighter, more tender crumb. Regular almond flour is not fine enough.
  • Powdered sugar helps the cake set better. If you use regular granular sugar, the cake will sink in the middle.

A slice of almond cake on a small white plate

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5 from 4 votes

4 Ingredient Lemon Almond Cake

This lemon almond cake has a light, tender crumb and a bright lemony flavor. It needs just 4 ingredients and doesn't require any wheat flour, dairy, butter or oil.
Servings: 12 slices
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
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Ingredients

  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 cup (125g) powdered sugar
  • 2 tbsp (30ml) lemon juice + zest of 1 lemon (about 1 heaping tsp)
  • 2 1/2 cups (230g) superfine blanched almond flour, see note

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease the interior of a 7 inch round springform pan and then line the bottom with parchment paper. Make sure the sides of the cake pan are thoroughly greased, otherwise the cake will stick to it.
  • In a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer, add eggs and sugar. Beat on highest speed with the wire whisk attachment for about 10 minutes or until mixture becomes very thick and turns a very pale yellow, and more than triples in volume. When you lift the beater, the batter that drips off should hold its form on top of the egg mixture for several seconds before sinking back down.
  • Add in the lemon juice and zest and fold it in with a spatula. Then gently fold in 1/3 of the almond flour with a spatula. Repeat with another 1/3 of the flour and then the final 1/3. Try your best not to deflate the egg mixture too much. The batter should still look very light and airy when you are done.
  • Transfer your batter to your prepared cake pan. Bake for about 35-40 minutes. The surface of the cake should be browned and feel lightly firm. Let cake cool for about 1 hour and then gently release it from the cake pan. I recommend running a thin spatula around the sides to loosen the cake before releasing it from the pan. I like to let the cake cool for a few more hours before decorating and serving but you don't want to wait too long to remove it from the pan because it will start to stick. The cake tastes best after it is fully cooled. If desired, you can dust with powdered sugar right before serving and add fresh fruit or sliced almonds.
  • Store any uneaten cake in an airtight container in the fridge or freezer.

Notes

  • Almond flour note: It is best to measure the almond flour with a scale. If you are measuring the almond flour with measuring cups, make sure to fluff up the almond flour in the bag first with a spoon. Then spoon it into your measuring cup and level off the surface with a spoon. If you don't fluff up the flour first or you directly scoop the flour with your measuring cup, you will end up with too much almond flour for this recipe. I used Kirkland superfine almond flour.
  • Lemon note: Make sure to use lemon zest, otherwise the cake does not have enough lemon flavor. You don't want to use too much lemon juice because it will cause the cake batter to be dense and gummy.
  • Use a good quality brand of powdered sugar. I used C&H.* Some cheaper brands add too much starch to the sugar.
  • *This product link is an affiliate link. This means I earn a commission from qualifying purchases.
Serving: 1slice, Calories: 188kcal, Carbohydrates: 14g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 24mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 10g, NET CARBS: 12
The nutrition information provided are only estimates based on an online nutritional calculator. This is not a comprehensive list of all the nutrients in the recipe (i.e., does not include vitamins, cholesterol, etc). I am not a certified nutritionist. Please consult a nutritionist or doctor for accurate information and any dietary restrictions and concerns you may have.
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