Dutch butter cake (Boterkoek)
Dutch Butter Cake (aka Boterkoek) is an traditional almond flat cake with a texture between cake and shortbread.
Servings: 8 slices
Calories:
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Alter quantities (metric only) 8 slices
Here's what you'll need...
- 20 cm loose bottomed sandwich cake tin
- stand mixer or hand mixer with beater attachment fitted (not the whisk)
Ingredients you'll need...
Dutch Butter Cake
- 150 g Unsalted butter at room temperature, but not overly soft
- 150 g Golden caster sugar or white caster sugar
- 2 Large eggs one lightly beaten for the cake and the other used for the glaze, both at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon Almond extract extract gives a nicer flavour than essence
- Zest of 1 medium lemon
- 150 g Plain flour
- ¼ teaspoon Fine salt
- 50 g Ground almonds
- Handful of flaked almonds
Here's what we do...
- Heat your oven to 170°C/150°C fan/340°F/Gas mark 3.
- Grease your cake tin and line the base with greaseproof paper.
- Fit the beaters to your stand mixer or hand mixer and beat your softened butter a little to be sure it is the right texture. The butter should stick to the bowl rather than the beater when soft enough.
- Add your sugar and beat together until light and fluffy. This takes about 1-2 minutes. It should be easily spreadable when ready. Wipe your bowl down as you go with your spatula to be sure everything is evenly mixed together.
- Sift together your flour and salt and set aside.
- Add your one lightly beaten egg (keep the other egg back for your egg wash) and a little flour to your beaten butter and sugar and beat together on a medium setting until combined. Scrape down your bowl intermittently to be sure that everything is fully mixed in.
- Add your vanilla extract, almond extract and lemon zest and beat in briefly.
- Add the rest of your sifted flour and salt and fold in gently with your spatula.
- Then add your ground almonds and fold in.
- Once everything is fully mixed, tip into your prepared cake and level out. The easiest way to do this is to take a piece of clingfilm, place it over the mixture and press to flatten it out. Do not press down too hard though or your cake will be very dense.
- Beat your other egg and spread over the cake to glaze it using your pastry brush (only use as much as is needed to cover the cake).
- Sprinkle over your flaked almonds.
- Bake in the centre of your oven for 30 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean and the cake edges are golden.
- When baked run a knife around the edge of the cake to loosen it from the tin, then leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes before inverting onto a cooling rack.
Supporting Notes
Hints:
Do not over mix your flour, or the cake will be too dense.
Tip:
Rather than an egg wash, you can bake your cake without it and covering with some softened apricot jam instead.
Make Your own Notes on this Recipe here...
