Almond-Lime Mini Travel Cakes

They're called "travel cakes" because they travel well. Picnics, trips, etc.

The original recipe called for St. Germain liqueur, which I didn't have and didn't feel like tracking down. However, I did find I wouldn't need to have it shipped from somewhere else...

I'm not always fond of flowery flavors. Still, I'm intrigued. I want to try it, I just never have. Maybe I'll order a cocktail with it one of these days.

Now that I've talked about St. Germain and you're not getting any, I should probably say something about what's in the actual recipe that I post here.

First of all, these cakes are really good.

You've got an intense cherry-almond flavor that's cut by a tart zingy lime burst.

To make sure the almond paste you use is gluten free, look for the information somewhere on the label, or check out the list of ingredients.

Solo brand almond paste is gluten free. Although the information is not printed on the can, it's listed in the FAQs on their website.

These petit-four sized cakes are not fluffy little morsels. They're moist, dense and a little chewy... like pound cake.

If you've got a pan that's shiny metal, not dark, it'll work better in this situation. I always prefer the shiny one, but I end up testing it anyway... I should know better.

I find the dark pans tend to turn cakes TOO dark. If that's what you've got to use, it would probably help to place a shiny (reflective) metal pan under the dark metal muffin tin when you place it in the oven.

If you happen to have two pans, go ahead and make one and a half recipes (since two 8-oz cans will pretty much yield that... and you don't end up having leftover almond paste).

Almond-Lime Mini Travel Cakes

makes 24

Adapted from Food and Wine- May, 2011

Cake:

10 oz almond paste, broken into approximately 1-inch pieces

3 large eggs

zest of 1 lime

2 1/2 T cornstarch

pinch of salt

5 T unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 T freshly squeezed lime juice

Icing:

2 c confectioners' sugar

2 1/2 T heavy cream

2 T Cointreau (or orange juice)

1 T freshly squeezed lime juice

zest of 3/4 lime

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and spray 24 mini muffin tins with vegetable oil spray (some pans come in 12s others in 24s). In a food processor, pulse the almond paste until it is broken down into small pieces. Be careful not to over-pulse or the almond paste will become oily. Add the lime zest and eggs and pulse until smooth. Add the cornstarch and salt and pulse until smooth. Add the butter and lime juice and pulse until incorporated.

Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until the edges are golden and the top springs back when lightly poked.

Place the pan on a rack to cool for 10 minutes and then pop the cakes out of the pan to cool completely.

When the cakes are cool, mix all the icing ingredients with a whisk in a medium-sized bowl until smooth. Spoon the icing over the cakes, letting it drip attractively down the sides.

If you happen to feel the need to store any, place them in a single layer in an airtight container.

(*If you don't have a mini muffin tin, you can use a regular-sized muffin tin- just adjust the baking time.)