Recipe: Frangipane cake base

I'm a sucker for marzipan, so this recipe which uses almond paste to form a cake base is right up my alley.  It's very easy to put together and bakes up nice and even and flat, so it could be used in a variety of ways.  In addition to using it as a cake base, you could spread it thin and use it for petit fours or as internal layers in a layered cake.  The thinner you make it, the more fragile it will be, so you may find that sometimes it helps to firm it up in the freezer for easier handling.  Definitely silicone mats are the way to go for a cleaner result.  When I used this recipe, I was making very thin layers (1/2 cm), so if you are making a thicker base, you will need to extend the cooking time accordingly.  I find as well that when using almond paste, let it come to room temperature and it will be much more forgiving to work with.

You will need:

200g           almond paste (room temperature)

25g             sugar

100g           unsalted butter (room temperature)

25g             flour

2                 eggs

Method:

 - set the oven to 325F

 - sift the flour

 - put the almond paste, sugar, butter and eggs in a food processor and mix smooth

 - add the flour and mix smooth again

 - spread in a thin layer on a 24cm x 36cm silicone mat

 - bake 20 minutes at 325F

 - cool

 - flip out onto parchment paper and peel the silicone mat off

 - cut to your desired shape and use