Back when I worked for the bank, I used to be part of a dinner club with several of my co-workers. We would meet once every month or so at a members’ home and enjoy a fine meal. Usually the host would provide the dinner but everyone else would bring an appetizer or a wine or something along those lines and a fine meal would be enjoyed with friends.

Following a trip to Spain and Portugal, I decided to make my next dinner a Spanish-style meal with examples of all the food I had enjoyed on that trip. The menu included gazpacho, an octopus salad, paella, and fresh French bread. The dessert that night was not one I had tasted on my trip, but one from my old stand-by Betty Crocker International Cookbook for Torta de Almendra or an Orange Almond Cake. It complimented the meal perfectly.

Going through my cookbook, I noticed that I had already converted the recipe to a lower carbohydrate version that was 29.3 carbs and 205 calories per 1/8 cake slice, but that didn’t break it down to net carbs. With the reduced carbs flour products available now, I was sure this could be done with a fairly low carb count, so here is the recipe for a lower carb and calorie count. And it is still delicious.
One note, like many European cakes and other desserts, it is not as sweet as American recipes tend to be, so adjust the sugar substitute if you like it sweeter. This cake uses almond flour, which is available at most supermarkets and health food stores. Check the net carb count on the package as it varies with different brands. I also use CarbQuick from Tova Foods in the recipe. There are other low carb flours and you might find those at health food stores or you can purchase online.

Almond flour makes this a very light and delicate cake. Be sure to let it cool before moving it and move it very carefully.

Torta de Almendra (Orange Almond Cake)

Makes 8 servings

1/2 cup Carbquick
3/4 cup Almond Flour
3/4 cup Sugar Substitute
2 teaspoons Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/3 cup Heavy Whipping Cream,
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon Water
1/3 cup Shortening
1 large Egg
2 teaspoons Orange Peel
1/3 cup Almonds, sliced
1 tablespoon granulated Sugar Substitute
2 tablespoons Orange sugar free syrup or Grand Marnier

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 1 1/2 inch round or square cake pan or 4 individual one cup cake pans, which is what I used, with floured baking spray. Combine flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, cream, water, shortening, egg and orange peel in a bowl and beat with a mixer on low speed for about 30 seconds, scraping bowl constantly, then switch to high speed for three minutes.

Pour batter into the pan and sprinkle with almond slices. Bake until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 to 45 minutes. Sprinkle with 1 tablepoon granulated sugar substitute and drizzle with orange syrup. Cool 10 to 15 minutes before removing from the pan by flipping the pan onto a serving plate. (You may need to loosen the cake by running a knife carefully along the edge.) Cool completely before serving.

Optional: Top with 1 tablespoon whipped cream and a piece of orange segment.

1 servings is 204 calories (3.9 net carbs) when made with Grand Marnier or 194 calories (3.1 net carbs) with sugar free orange syrup. (Count does not include whipped cream and orange, which will add a little more to it.)

*You can use Splenda or other powdered sugar substitute for all the sugar substitutes in the recipe; use 3/4 cup for the whole recipe. However, the carb count will increase because Splenda and most of the powder-type sugars have slightly less than 1 net carb per teaspoon due to the filler used to hold the sucralose. 35 teaspoons or packets equal 3/4 cup of sugar. So that would be over 4 net carbs per serving added to the carb count.

Original POST BY RENE AVERETT AT 8/28/2012 2:42 PM