You’ll need just eight ingredients to make it, and it keeps well for several days in the fridge and several months in the freezer. This wonderful cake is dedicated to my beloved Oma (grandma in Dutch), who was an amazing baker. I miss her buttery baked goods, and I’m doing my best to recreate some of them, albeit keeping them sugar-free and low-carb. A tall order, for sure. Several of my baked goods were inspired by Oma. These buttery shortbread cookies, for example, are wonderful. But I especially like this pound cake because it’s rich, buttery, and not too sweet - just like Oma’s cakes used to be.
Ingredients
Instructions
Recipe Card
“As much as it will take.” This was how Ziporah, my husband’s grandma, used to respond when my mother-in-law would ask her how to make one of her famous recipes. Needless to say, this is not how most of us make recipes these days. Modern cookbooks and food blogs have spoiled us with exact measurements, detailed instructions, and step-by-step photographs. When I asked Oma for her boterkoek (Dutch butter cake) recipe, I was pleasantly surprised when she started with exact measurements: “Take 300 grams of flour, 250 grams of butter, and 250 grams of sugar.” Of course, it all went downhill from there. The rest of the instructions went something like, “Make a smooth dough out of these ingredients; transfer to a pan (what size??); brush with egg white; bake 5 minutes at a very high temperature (how high, grandma??), then lower the temperature and bake until done.” 🙂 Oma’s baked goods, in general, are one of my favorite childhood food memories. They were always so rich and buttery. They stood in stark contrast to the margarine-based baked goods that most Israelis made back then (margarine was cheaper, it was thought to be better for you, and it kept foods Pareve for those eating Kosher). I ended up making that cake, improvising a little, and loving every bite of the dense, buttery result. But now that my husband and I are on a low-carb diet, that wonderful cake is no longer an option. Over the years, many variations on the basic recipe have evolved. Since my goal is to create low-carb and gluten-free baked goods, my recipe obviously differs from the classic one, but the end result is similar: a rich, flavorful, buttery cake, where a thin slice goes a LONG way. So don’t be tempted to cut yourself a thick slice! Do as the Dutch do, show some restraint, and cut your cake into twelve slices. 🙂
Avocado oil spray: Not mandatory, but I like to use it to lightly grease the parchment-lined loaf pan. Eggs: I use large eggs in most of my recipes, including this one. Even though the ratio of eggs to the other ingredients is fairly high, the cake doesn’t taste eggy. Butter: I use unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled. If you can get European butter, go for it! It’s wonderfully creamy and flavorful. Sweetener: I use stevia glycerite to equal about ½ cup of sugar. Vanilla extract: Try to use the real thing - pure vanilla extract - and not the artificially flavored stuff. Lemon zest: Please don’t skip it. It greatly enhances the cake. Almond flour: I use blanched, superfine almond flour. I don’t recommend using a coarse almond meal. Kosher salt: I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt. If using any other salt, use just a pinch. Baking powder: Make sure it’s fresh, and use a gluten-free powder if needed.
Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line a small loaf pan (8.5 X 4.5 inches) with parchment paper, leaving an overhang (as shown in the photo below), and lightly grease it. In a medium bowl, combine the ingredients in the order listed, starting with the liquid ingredients and gradually adding the dry ones. Bake the cake until it’s puffed, golden, and fragrant, and a toothpick inserted in its center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven to a cooling rack. Let it cool for 30 minutes. Slice and serve. For dessert, I sometimes splurge and top a slice with keto whipped cream (or chocolate whipped cream) and berries. You can also slice the entire cake and freeze the slices in freezer bags, separating layers with wax paper. If you’d like to freeze it whole, let it cool completely, wrap it in cling wrap and then in foil, and freeze it for up to three months.
