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Dutch Almond Butter Cake (Oma’s Boterkoek)

Dutch Almond Butter cake takes simple basic ingredients and creates a chewy cookie like cake with a delicious salty-sweet, buttery, almond flavor that we can never get enough of.

Simple and delicious this buttery almond cake comes together quickly and easily. This is a great recipe for baking with kids.

dutch almond butter cake in pie pan

Boterkoek is one of my favorite dutch desserts along with stroopwafels, of course. This traditional dutch almond cake recipe is my take on my Oma’s recipe. I started adding a little citrus zest to make the almond flavoring pop even more and an egg wash to create a beautiful gloss on top. These changes are Oma approved!

I have so many memories of tea times around my Oma’s table with dainty mugs of steaming Nutcracker Sweet Black Tea from Celestial seasons and a tin full of her homemade Boterkoek cut into perfect little squares.

My brother’s request a batch of this every Christmas and it promptly disappears!

This is one of my most requested dutch recipes. Anyone who tries this Dutch butter cake recipe goes back for seconds and then begs for the recipe!

Ingredients

Butter: room temperature salted butter.

Sugar: we use granulated sugar for this recipie. The molasses flavor in brown sugar will overpower the almond flavors so I don’t recommend swapping the sugar for this recipe.

Eggs: room temperature

Flour: no fancy flours needed, just plain all purpose flour.

boterkoek ingredients, flour, sugar, almond extract, butter, baking powder

Baking Powder: you don’t want too much rise, it should be a slightly denser cookie-like cake.

Almond extract: you can also use a teaspoon almond paste. I have found good almond paste to be harder and harder to find so I use almond extract most if the time now.

Citrus zest: a little citrus zest really makes the almond flavor pop. I like to use lemon zest in the summer and orange zest in the winter. Both are delicious.

Sliced almonds: to sprinkle or place decoratively on the top of your cakes.

Egg Wash: this part is completely optional but will give you that beautiful glossy top.

Supplies for making Dutch Almond Butter Cake

Pans: Pie pans, cake pans, springform pan, tart pan, or other baking tin…they all work as long as they are 8 or 9 inches.

Mixing supplies: You need a stand mixer or large bowl and electric mixer for this recipe.

Bowls: A small bowl for the egg wash, and a medium bowl for the flour mixture.

Pastry Brush: For brushing on the egg wash.

How to make Dutch Almond Butter Cake

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 9 inch pie pans, or 9 round cake pans. I like to butter a pie pan for mine. You can also line the bottom with parchment paper if you want to remove the whole cake from the pan cleanly.

Prepare your egg wash by whisking together a room temperature egg with one tablespoon of water. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment cream butter, almond extract, lemon zest and sugar until light and fluffy.

sugar and butter cubes in a mixing bowl

In a separate bowl combine flour and baking powder.

Slowly add half of your beaten eggs to the butter mixture. Then half of the flour mixture.

Add the rest of the beaten egg and flour mixture and mix until just combined.

You should have a stiff slightly crumbly dough similar to shortbread cookies. If your dough is too crumbly add 1 teaspoon of water at a time until the dough just comes together.

boterkoek dough on white spatual

Divide the dough in two equal parts and press each half evenly into the two prepared pans. I like to press the dough in with my hands and smooth the top with the back of a spoon.

You can sprinkle the top of the cake liberally with sliced almonds as my Oma always does or use the tines of a fork to make a crosshatch pattern across the top if you prefer.

hand holding sliced almonds

Lightly brush the top of your cakes with egg wash.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the top is perfectly golden brown. Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool in their pans on a cooling rack.

Once cooled use a sharp knife cut into wedges or small squares and enjoy with your favorite tea or cup of coffee.

boterkoek cut into triangles wedges on parchment

How to store Boterkoek:

I often bake ours a day ahead because I find they are even more delicious the next day. I don’t slice into the cakes until we are ready to serve them. Simply wrap the whole cooled cake in plastic wrap.

Once sliced this Dutch Almond Butter cake keeps well in an airtight container at room temperature for three days.

Freezing Boterkoek:

Boterkoek freezes really well! Once your cake has cooled wrap it wrap it in plastic wrap. Then wrap it again in aluminum foil. Don’t pre slice the cake or it will be dry. When you are ready to use your frozen Boterkoek allow it to come to room temperature before slicing.

Tips for making Boterkoek

  • To get the proper texture make sure your butter and eggs are room temperature.
  • Cream the butter and sugar until it is nice and fluffy!
  • Allow your Boterkoek to cool all the way before slicing
dutch almond butter cake on a small plate
Yield: 2 cakes

Dutch Almond Butter Cake (Oma’s Boterkoek)

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes

Dutch Almond Butter cake takes simple basic ingredients and creates a chewy cookie like cake with a delicious sweet, buttery, almond flavor that we can never get enough of.

Ingredients

  • 2 sticks of salted butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 tablespoon almond extract
  • 2 eggs, room temperature and beaten
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • sliced almonds

Egg Wash

  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon water

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two 9 inch pie pans, or 8 inch round cake pans.
  2. Prepare your egg wash by whisking together a room temperature egg with one tablespoon of water. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream butter, almond extract, and sugar until light and fluffy. About 1 minute.
  4. In a separate bowl combine your flour and baking soda.
  5. Slowly add half of your beaten eggs to the butter mixture. Then half of the flour mixture. Mix untul just cobined.
  6. Add the rest of the beaten egg and flour mixture and mix until the dough is just combined and comes together. .
  7. You should have a stiff slightly crumbly dough similar to shortbread cookies. If your dough is too crumbly or not coming together add 1 teaspoon of water at a time until the dough just comes together.
  8. Divide the dough in two equal parts and press each half evenly into the two prepared pie pans. I like to press the dough in and smooth the top with the back of a spoon.
  9. You can sprinkle the top of the cake liberally with sliced almonds or use the tines of a fork to make a crosshatch pattern across the top if you prefer.
  10. Lightly brush the top of your cakes with egg wash.
  11. Bake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the top is perfectly golden brown. Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool in their pans on a cooling rack.
  12. Once cooled and you are ready to serve use a sharp knife cut into wedges or small squares and enjoy with your favorite tea or cup of coffee.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

16

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 294Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 65mgSodium: 166mgCarbohydrates: 35gFiber: 1gSugar: 19gProtein: 5g

Did you make this recipe?

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Nichole

Tuesday 12th of December 2023

The recipe calls for baking powder, but several times in the instructions it says baking soda. Not sure which to use.

Chelsea

Tuesday 12th of December 2023

Hey Nicole,

Baking soda was a typo, I've fixed it.

You want baking powder!

Thanks,

Chelsea

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