Delicious Tosca cake (Swedish caramelized almond cake)
Tosca cake (Toscakaka), the luxurious Swedish almond caramel cake is surprisingly simple to do. Key points are in caramelizing the almond flakes well and letting them crisp and turn golden brown in the oven. This delicious almond cake is the perfect companion for fika, the coffee time with a cup of coffee or tea.
Tips for making
- Gather all ingredients ready, mix dry in a separate bowl and wet in another to make the perfect structure for the light sponge cake.
- Take your time to caramelize the topping in a small saucepan to get the perfect caramel flavor.
- Keep a close eye on the almond flakes when baking in the oven. You want to make the topping crisp but not burnt.
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Nordic insider: A peak into Nordic living
What does Tosca mean in Swedish?
There are many stories about the origin of the name of Tosca cake. The fact is that Tosca cake appeared in Swedish cookbooks around the same time Puccini’s opera Tosca premiered in Sweden 1930s.
Tosca is not a Swedish word and doesn’t have a direct translation.
Nowadays the word Tosca refers to the caramel topping with almond flakes. You can also notice several other baked goods like buns or other types of cakes, with delicious Tosca topping and then they are named accordingly, like “Tosca buns”.
Tosca cake and its variations are found, served, baked, and loved in all the Scandinavian countries and Finland.
Ingredients you need for Tosca cake
- Eggs
- Caster sugar
- Wheat flour
- Almond meal: can be substituted with 85 grams of wheat flour
- Baking powder
- Vanilla sugar
- Milk, I have used semi-skimmed milk, but for a more luxury version, you can use whole milk or even cream.
- Melted butter
- Brown sugar: gives the cake more caramel flavors. Can be substituted with white sugar as well.
- Almond flakes
You can find the exact measurements on the recipe card.
Tools you may need
- Springform pan ( ⌀ 22 cm / 8.66 inch)
- Large mixing bowl
- Small bowl or medium-sized bowl for dry ingredients
- Measuring cups / scale
- Small saucepan for melting the butter, mixing wet ingredients, and making the topping
- Electric mixer
- Spatula
How to make Tosca cake
Step one: Prepare oven, butter, and cake tin
- Set the oven temperature to 175°C ( 347°F).
- Melt the butter for the cake batter in the pot and set aside to cool.
- Butter the spring form edges and place a round-shaped parchment paper on the bottom of the cake tin.
Step two: Whisk sugar and eggs
Mix the caster sugar and eggs in an electric mixer using high speed for about 5 minutes. When you can “write” an 8 on the surface with batter without the shape disappearing in the first second your sugar-egg mixture is well whisked.
Step three: Mix the dry ingredients
Mix together wheat flour, almond meal, baking powder and vanilla sugar in a separate bowl and set aside.
Step four: Mix the wet ingredients
Mix milk with the melted butter in the pot and set aside so that the butter cools down.
Step five: Mix all alternating wet and dry ingredients
Lastly, pour alternating the flour mixture and the milk.butter mixture into the egg-sugar batter and whisk carefully using a spatula to keep the batter fluffy.
Step six: Pour into the cake tin and bake
Pour the Tosca cake batter into the prepared tin and bake in the middle of the oven for about 20 minutes.
Step seven: Make the caramelized almond topping
While the Tosca cake base is baking in the oven, it’s time to mix the topping ingredients. Measure the butter and brown sugar into the pot and let them melt. Add in milk, wheat flour, and lastly the almond flakes. Keep the stove on medium-high heat to caramelize the topping, it should become slightly sticky but not dry.
Step eight: Spread the topping and bake some more
Take the cake from the oven. Set the oven to 200°C (392°F) Spread the caramelized almond topping on top of the cake base and return to the oven to bake about 10 minutes until the topping looks golden brown. Let the cake cool completely until you detach the spring form. If it feels stuck use the help of a knife to detach the cake. Dust with the icing sugar if you like.
Serving the Tosca cake
Traditionally the Swedish almond cake cake is served plain, but sometimes a bit of extra indulgence with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a bit of vanilla custard feels just perfect. Tosca cake is the indulgence for the Swedish fika, the coffee moment with cake.
Storage
Stored airtight the Tosca cake will be good in the fridge for up to 5 days and in the freezer for about six months. When serving, remember to heat it well for it tastes so much better when heated.
How to tweak this recipe
- For a more luxurious version, use cream instead of milk.
- For a dairy-free Tosca cake, change the milk into a neutral plant-based milk and butter into margarine.
Tosca to die for?
Are you a Tosca lover (the almond topping or the opera)? Tag me on Instagram with @blue.tea.tile or let me know in the comments, how you enjoy the Tosca!
You can find the recipe card below!
Short on time?
Pin it for later!
Tosca cake (Swedish caramelised almond cake)
Tosca cake (Toscakaka), the luxurious Swedish almond caramel cake is surprisingly simple. Key points are in caramelizing the almond flakes well and letting them crisp and turn golden brown in the oven. This delicious almond cake is the perfect companion for fika, the coffee time with a cup of coffee or tea.
Ingredients
Cake batter
- 2 eggs
- 150 g caster sugar
- 90 g wheat flour
- 40 g almond meal
- 1,5 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla sugar
- 50 ml milk
- 150 g butter
Cake topping
- 75 g butter
- 100g almond flakes
- 60 g brown sugar
- 50 ml milk
- 1 tbsp wheat flour
Additional ingredients
- Butter and bread crumbs for buttering the cake tin
- Powdered sugar to dust on the top
Instructions
- Step one: Prepare oven, butter, and cake tin
Set the oven temperature to 175°C ( 347°F).
Melt the butter for the cake batter in the pot and set aside to cool.
Butter the spring form edges and place a round-shaped parchment paper on the bottom of the cake tin. - Step two: Whisk sugar and eggs
Mix the caster sugar and eggs in an electric mixer using high speed for about 5 minutes. When you can « write » an 8 on the surface with batter without the shape disappearing in the first second your sugar-egg mixture is well whisked. - Step three: Mix the dry ingredients
Mix together wheat flour, almond meal, baking powder and vanilla sugar in a separate bowl and set aside. - Step four: Mix the wet ingredients
Mix milk with the melted butter in the pot and set aside so that the butter cools down. - Step five: Mix all alternating wet and dry ingredients
Lastly, pour alternating the flour mixture and the milk-butter mixture into the egg-sugar batter and whisk carefully using a spatula to keep the batter fluffy. - Step six: Pour into the cake tin and bake
Pour the Tosca cake batter into the prepared tin and bake in the middle of the oven for about 20 minutes. - Step seven: Make the caramelized almond topping
While the Tosca cake base is baking in the oven, it’s time to mix the topping ingredients. Measure the butter and brown sugar into the pot and let them melt. Add in milk, wheat flour, and lastly the almond flakes. Keep the stove on medium-high heat to caramelize the topping, it should become slightly sticky but not dry. - Step eight: Spread the topping and bake some more
Take the cake from the oven. Set the oven to 200°C (392°F) Spread the caramelized almond topping on top of the cake base and return to the oven to bake about 10 minutes until the topping looks golden brown. Let the cake cool completely until you detach the spring form. If it feels stuck use the help of a knife to detach the cake. Dust with the icing sugar if you like.
Serving the Tosca cake
Traditionally the Swedish almond cake cake is served plain, but sometimes a bit of extra indulgence with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a bit of vanilla custard feels just perfect.
Storage
Stored airtight the Tosca cake will be good in the fridge for up to 5 days and in the freezer for about six months. When serving, remember to heat it well for it tastes so much better when heated.
Notes
- If you want to know more about how to adjust the recipe, scroll up to the header "How to tweak this recipe".
- To read more about the story behind the Tosca cake look for the Nordic Insider info box in this post.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 600Total Fat: 37gSaturated Fat: 17gTrans Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 118mgSodium: 1244mgCarbohydrates: 65gFiber: 3gSugar: 46gProtein: 8g
These calculations are generated automatically by Nutritionix based on the ingredients shown in the recipe. The nutrition information is an estimation and may include errors. All nutritional information presented and written within this site (blueteatile.com) is intended for informational purposes only. The writer is not a certified nutritionist or registered dietitian and any nutritional information should be used as a general guideline only.
