Marzipan Cake

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I never knew marzipan can be so tasty and so useful in baking ! My first encounter with it was eating some marzipan-filled chocolate. To be honest, I didn’t really enjoy it. Perhaps it was too sweet or perhaps I always prefer eating pure chocolate. But after I learned to make the Eisenbahner (Railroad) Cookies, I absolutely fell in love with it ! With high hopes for myself, I decided to make a cake this time…..but sadly…..I failed twice ! How frustrating ! The “failures” actually tasted pretty good. I realized the problem was the pans I used. For the first time, I used a 9 inch spring-form pan and the cake turned out too flat (It is a denser cake and it won’t rise very much). So I switched to a 9 inch x 5 inch loaf pan. But it took too long to bake through and the outside of the cake was dry and brown. So for the third time, I used an 8 inch cake ring and baked it in a hot water bath and…..Success finally ! I thought I would never make it !  Phew ! Now I get to sit down, relax and enjoy my cake after all that hard work !

Makes one 8 inch round cake 

  • 180 g unsalted butter, softened
  • 200 g marzipan, cut into small pieces and softened
  • 120 g granulated sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • 60 ml milk
  • 60 g honey
  • Zest of 1/2 orange
  • 180 g all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Icing sugar and almond slices for toppings
  1. Grease and flour an 8 inch cake ring  
  2. Wrap bottom with parchment paper, then 2 layers of aluminium foil and place on a rimmed baking trayCake RingCake Ring
  3. Preheat oven to 350°F
  4. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt, set aside
  5. Using an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together butter, marzipan and sugar 
  6. Add eggs, one at a time
  7. Mix in vanilla and almond extract, milk, honey and orange zest 
  8. Add flour mixture in two parts, mix until blended
  9. Pour batter into cake ring (it’s ok if batter is slightly gritty) 
  10. Pour about one inch of hot water in baking tray and bake cake in hot water bath for about 60 minutes  
  11. Cool and remove cake ring
  12. Top with icing sugar and almond slicesMarzipan CakeMarzipan Cake

20 thoughts on “Marzipan Cake”

  1. Denise

    This looks like a lovely recipe, Vicky, and one that I look forward to trying. It will be a nice moist cake that keeps well, I am sure. Good on you for persisting with this recipe – it looks like a winner!

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  3. Teresa

    Those chocolate-covered marzipan logs are not a great introduction- they always seem a bit dry and bland to me. I much prefer something like this cake (or cute marzipan decorations!). I’m impressed with your process for figuring out the best method to use – the end result is lovely!

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    1. tinysweettooth Post author

      Hi Emily,

      Thank you for your question. If you don’t have a cake ring, you can use any cake pan that you have at home. You can still bake it in a water bath, but no need to wrap the bottom with parchment or foil (as the pan has a bottom). Make sure you oil and flour you pan slightly so you can take the cake out easily. Hope this helps, thanks !

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    1. tinysweettooth Post author

      Hi Tatiana, thank you for your question. You can probably use almond flour, but the cake may be denser and more oily. Some reference suggests a 1:1 substitution, but I am not sure, you may have to experiment.

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  8. Nicki

    What is the purpose of using a water bath? I’m not super experienced in baking, and I’ve seen this before but don’t know why people use it. Thanks!!

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    1. tinysweettooth Post author

      Hi Nicki, thank you for your message. It helps to keep the cake moist. Especially when you are baking a whole cake, by the time the centre is done, the outside of the cake may be too dry.😊

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    1. tinysweettooth Post author

      Hi, thank you for your question. The cake would work without the extract and the almond slices. But marzipan itself is made of almonds, so your son probably won’t be able to eat it.

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  10. JenT

    Hi! Thank you so much for this great recipe, it looks delicious. Can’t wait to try it! What’s the best way to store it (can you freeze it)? And/or what’s the shelf life?
    Thank you so much!

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    1. tinysweettooth Post author

      Hi, thank you for your question! You can keep it in the fridge for about a week. I haven’t tried freezing it, but it should fine in the freezer for a month or so. Hope the recipe works out for you! 😊

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