The Genoa bread ('Pain de Gênes') is a cake made from almond paste, eggs and melted butter, but only a minimal amount of flour.
About this recipe
This is the recipe of a sponge cake that is delicious ! Think Almonds, Orange... just splendid. You may use it as a sponge to be used in your cakes, or just plain... you will love it!
You may use this recipe as a treat in itself, or as a sponge for your layer cakes
Origin of the recipe
This cake is said to have been invented to commemorate the 1800 siege of French forces at Genoa, when the city’s inhabitants survived largely on almonds
The version we know it today was invented by the 1840s Parisian pastry chef Fauvel, who worked at the Chiboust pâtisserie. Fauvel initially called it gateau d'Ambroise (Ambrosia Cake)
1. Dice the Butter (4 Tablespoons or 50 g) and let it soften at room temperature
2. Place inside the mixing bowl: the Marzipan (¾ Cup or 200 g), the Eggs (⅓ Cup or 120 g) and the Orange Zest (1)
3. For the Marzipan : The recipe is HERE
4. 
If the Marzipan is too hard, just warm it in the microwave 10 seconds to soften it
5. For the Orange Zest, simply use a microplane grater
6. Professionals recommend to not grate the orange on the grater
Microplane Zester Grater
Zester Deiss
7. Professional chefs usually scrape the outer skin with the grater placed on the Orange, which will avoid grating the sour white pith ("skin")
8. Always leave behind the soft, white pith that lies underneath as it has a bitter, unappealing taste that you simply don't want to include
9. For the next steps: You may use either a stand mixer (like a Kitchen Aid appliance) or an electric beater
KitchenAid 7-Quart Stand Mixer
Hand Mixer
10. Whisk to incorporate the Marzipan (¾ Cup or 200 g) and the Eggs (⅓ Cup or 120 g)
11. Whisk in the soft Butter (4 Tablespoons or 50 g). The butter must be softened first, at room temperature for 30 minutes
12. Incorporate the Flour (3 Tablespoons or 30 g), the Baking Powder (1 teaspoon or 4 g)
13. Whisk for a few minutes
The result is a pretty thick dough, not too liquidy
The mold
14. I recommend using a silicon square mold, easy to order online
15. The size of the silicon mold is 7.87" (or 7 7/8" or 20 cm) x 7.87" (or 7 7/8" or 20 cm)
16. Pour the batter into the mold
17. Spread evenly using a spatula
18. 
Bake in preheated oven at 360 °F / 180 °C until golden brown
Perforated Baking Pan9 x 13 inch
19. Bake for approx. 20/30 minutes. Put a knife into the sponge and if it comes out clean it is baked.
20. Unmold. Wrap airtight
21. I recommend to set aside the dough in the freezer to harden it
22. Unmold. Wrap airtight
23. To use in a layer cake, you may slice and soak with syrup
That's it!
