What is a Reine de Saba cake?

A Reine de Saba cake is a French, rich, sophisticated, chocolate cake made with ground almonds, rum, meringue and of course chocolate. It's topped with a chocolate ganache and can be decorated with almond slices. It's said to be one of the first French cakes that Julia Child ever ate and fell in love with!

Is almond meal and almond flour the same thing?

Almond meal and almond flour are both made with almonds. The difference between the two is almond meal is made by grinding raw almonds with their skins on whereas almond flour is made by grinding blanched almonds without their skins. This results in a finer texture and lighter in colour than almond meal.

Can I subsitute almond flour for almond meal?

Depending on the recipe almond flour can be substituted for almond meal especially if the recipe only requires a little of the ingredient. The difference between the two is the weight, colour and texture. Almond meal is coarser, darker, and heavier than almond flour. This could have an impact on recipes looking for a denser weight as almond flour is light and fluffy.

Almond meal is ground raw almonds that have their skins on. It's a little coarse in texture and can have extra weight, similar to the texture and weight of corn meal.

Julia Child's Reine de Saba Cake

Name: Julia Child's Reine de Saba Cake
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped; 8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature; 2 Tablespoons dark rum (or brewed coffee); 1/2 teaspoon plus a pinch salt, separated; 2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, separated; 1/4 teaspoon almond extract; 1/3 cup almond meal or almond flour; 3 eggs, separate the yolks from the whites, at room temperature; 1/2 cup cake flour, sifted; Optional: 1/4 cup sliced almonds for garnish; 2 Tablespoons bittersweet chocolate, chopped; 1/4 teaspoon salt; 2 Tablespoons dark rum (or brewed coffee); 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

Julia Child’s Reine de Saba Cake

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5 from 2 reviews

Rich and utterly delicious, this classic cake by Julia Child will be a chocolate lover’s dream!

Author: Julia Child
Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 25 mins
Total Time: 45 mins
Yield: 1 Cake 1x
Category: Cake
Cuisine: French

Ingredients

Units Scale

For cake

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 Tablespoons dark rum (or brewed coffee)
1/2 teaspoon plus a pinch salt, separated
2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, separated
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/3 cup almond meal or almond flour
3 eggs, separate the yolks from the whites, at room temperature
1/2 cup cake flour, sifted
Optional: 1/4 cup sliced almonds for garnish

For Frosting

2 Tablespoons bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons dark rum (or brewed coffee)
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°. Butter and flour a 8″ cake pan (or butter and line the pan with parchment paper).
Melt the chocolate and the rum together in a heat-safe bowl over a pot of barely simmering water. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and 2/3 cup of the sugar until pale yellow and fluffy, add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and combine. Add the egg yolks one at a time and beat until well blended. Add almond extract.
In another large bowl, with clean beaters, beat the egg whites and a pinch of salt until soft peaks form. Sprinkle one tablespoon sugar and beat until stiff peaks are formed.
With a rubber spatula, blend the melted chocolate into the butter and sugar mixture, stir in the almond meal.
Stir in one quarter of the beaten egg whites to lighten the batter. Delicately fold in a third of the remaining whites and when partially blended, sift one third of the flour and continue folding. Repeat this process until you’ve added all the flour and folded in all of the whites.
Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the edges of the pan are set and the center is still moist.
Let cake cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Then flip the cake out onto a cake dish. Let cool completely before frosting.
Make the frosting. Melt the chocolate and the rum together in a heat-safe bowl over a pot of barely simmering water. Remove from heat and beat in the butter with a whisk, one tablespoon at a time. If your icing is too runny set the bowl of chocolate into an ice bath and beat until the mixture has cooled to a spreading consistency.
Frost the cake. Decorate with sliced almonds if you wish.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 serving of 12
Calories: 296
Sugar: 17.5g
Sodium: 171mg
Fat: 20.4g
Saturated Fat: 11.5g
Unsaturated Fat: 0
Trans Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 23.2g
Fiber: 1.1g
Protein: 4g
Cholesterol: 79mg

Find it online: https://bakingforfriends.com/julia-childs-reine-de-saba-cake/