Dense Easy Almond Cake

Our answer

Nigella's Easy Almond Cake (from Domestic Goddess and on the Nigella website) is made with a base mixture of marzipan, butter, sugar and eggs. These are mixed together in a food processor before the flour is added. We suspect that the cake may be heavy as the marzipan may be being processed too much and this can cause the nut oils in the marzipan to separate out. When you make the cake ensure that the marzipan is soft, it may help to knead it for a few seconds before cutting it up (but again don't work it too much). Also the butter should be a similar texture to the marzipan. If the butter is very soft it may also be too oily to emulsify fully with the marzipan. Only process the butter and marzipan briefly with the sugar, until they are just combined, before adding the eggs. It may also help to add a tablespoon of the flour with each addition of egg.

We would also suggest checking that the self-raising flour has not passed its best before date as it will become less active over time, particularly in damp or humid conditions.