Swedish Visiting Cake

A citrus-y almond-y delicious naked cake that one can quickly whip up between meetings, especially in the current times when we are all working from home. There is no fussy frosting or complicated measurements or ingredients. You bake with what you have in your pantry. 

A little story on this cake (although I did promise that I won't bore anyone with preludes to the recipe) - this one is pretty interesting. Dorie Greenspan narrates a charming story of this cake. The cake was given to Dorie by Ingela as a thank you gift. 

In her own words,

Ingela’s mother, who taught her to make the cake in their native Sweden, said it came together so speedily that you could start mixing the batter the moment you spied visitors coming up the walk. By the time they were settled in your home, the cake would be ready to serve.

On to the recipe now, of which there are too many variations. This one has stuck with me and has been tried and tested many times. And, it has never failed. 

Dry Ingredients:

1. 1 cup flour
2. 1 cup sugar
3. 1/2 tsp salt
4. A handful of almond flakes

Wet Ingredients:

1. Lemon Zest (from 2 lemons or more) / Orange Zest
2. 1 tsp vanilla
3. 100 gm butter, melted and cooled
4. 2 eggs

Method:

1. Butter and line a 9 inch pan. Most recipes recommend using a cast iron pan but use what you have. 
2. Pre-heat the oven to 175 C
3. In a large bowl, add the sugar and the lemon zest. Rub the lemon zest and sugar with your fingers until aromatic and the sugar is moist. 
4. Whisk in 2 eggs and beat well. Add the salt and vanilla. Beat until fluffy. 
5. Tip in the flour and melted butter. Mix well with a spatula.
6. Pour into the pan. Sprinkle the almonds and a spot of sugar.
7. Bake for 30 minutes. (or more or less depending on your oven settings) 
8. Let cool and slice. 

Note: I do not know of an egg-less variation but if you have tried and succeeded, do drop me a note.