9 Nutty Almond Flour Recipes For Breakfast and Dessert

Overhead view of a sliced gateau basque cake with a hand reaching in for a slice. — Serious Eats / Amanda Suarez

Almond flour is nothing more than very finely ground almonds. While it’s not always an appropriate substitute for all-purpose flour, in the right recipe, almond flour adds flavor, texture, and in some cases, helps make a standard recipe gluten-free. From decadent cakes to sweet breakfasts, this collection of recipes showcases almond flour in crusts, batter, and crunchy granola. So what are you waiting for? It’s time to get nuts about almond flour.

Fluffy and Nutty Almond Layer Cake

A three layer chocolate-frosted almond cake on a pedestal with a slice removed. The slice is on a blue plate with a fork and a striped cloth napkin. — Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Here, a substantial proportion of almond flour in the batter results in a dessert that strikes a balance between a fluffy American cake and a hearty European torte.

Easy Lemon Ricotta Cake

Overhead view of lemon ricotta cake being sliced. — Serious Eats / Maureen Celestine

With bright notes of citrus and richness from ricotta, this subtly sweet cake is what we want to eat for breakfast every day.

Gâteau Basque

The grown-up version of a Pop-Tart, gâteau Basque combines elements of a cookie, a tart, and a pie, with a filling of pastry cream or cherry jam.

Honey Vanilla Almond Cake

This almond cake is light, tender, and incredibly easy to make.

Goat Cheese Cheesecake With Fig Jam

A small goat cheese cheesecake, with a slice taken out, covered in fig jam, next to sliced almonds. — Serious Eats / Anna Markow

This cheesecake is meant to taste like an ultra-creamy goat’s cheese, with a boost of salt and flavor from the almond flour crust, which also makes the dessert gluten-free. The fig jam recipe makes plenty enough for the cheesecake, plus a little extra.

Gluten-Free Chocolate Almond Strawberry Cheesecake Tart

Chocolate almond gluten-free tart topped with sliced strawberries. — Serious Eats

In this recipe, a crunchy almond-and-cocoa crust is topped with cream cheese, strawberry jam, and fresh strawberries.

Apple-Ginger Tishpishti (Gluten-Free Almond and Walnut Cake)

A plate of tishpishti (Sephardic nut cake), sliced into diamonds. — Serious Eats / Vicky Wasik

Our version of this festive dessert features grated apple, a heady mix of spices and citrus, and a final soak in apple brandy–ginger syrup.

Gluten-Free Maple Almond Cornbread

A square of gluten-free maple cornbread on a white plate next to a fork and a glass of milk on a plaid tablecloth. — Serious Eats / Elizabeth Barbone

This cornbread is for anyone on a gluten-free diet—just be sure to use a certified gluten-free cornmeal. Maple syrup adds a hint of sweetness.

Gluten-Free Almond-Maple Granola Clusters

A white bowl of almond maple granola clusters on a green and white striped tea towel. — Serious Eats

Thanks to almond flour, this sweet granola contains a little almond flavor in each bite.