Burnt Almond Torte

In case you haven’t noticed, I love treats. I love local coffeehouses and fresh pasta and cute-as-a-button bakeries.

So, it isn’t unusual for friends to ask me things like this: a) Have you tried THIS PLACE out? b) Do you know what THIS WEIRD FOOD ITEM is? c) Have you ever made THIS BAKED ITEM before? d) I’m going to THIS CITY. Do you know any cute coffee spots?

I can’t explain why something new in the world of food makes me excited. I might have been born with an underdeveloped love for food* which is just now finding its wings and taking flight.

*At my childhood dinner table, I could distinguish the difference between mashed red potatoes and mashed Idaho potatoes. This was the sign, mom and dad!

A few years ago, my Wonder Woman of a friend, Lisa, stumbled upon a cake she’d never experienced before. It was her father’s birthday, and the whole family was gathered together in Pittsburgh to celebrate.

Enter the Burnt Almond Torte.

Lisa, who isn’t normally a big almond fan, raved about this cake. It was apparently, the talk of the party. Despite the number of years spent in Pittsburgh combined among the family, this little cake had not been known by all. Yet, it was born in Pittsburgh, and from what I’ve come up with, only able to be bought in Pittsburgh.

Imagine: layers of beautiful yellow cake, rich with the taste of butter and vanilla, the refreshing flavor of pastry cream lightened with a bit of vanilla bean topping each layer, airy butter cream surrounding the cake, and sugared almonds pressed into the surrounding buttercream, packed tightly into each possible area to which they can stick.

It did sound divine.

A few months later, Lisa showed up on my doorstep with bags from the bakery.

“I bought a cake,” she said, placing the weighty box in my hands. “You and Lance eat some and then I’ll come back for the rest tomorrow.”

This was the day I really met the Oakmont Bakery of Pittsburgh and their Burnt Almond Torte.

Despite having visited Pittsburgh myself in 2017, I hadn’t had chance to stumble upon Oakmont during our short visit.

In addition to getting to taste their famous Burnt Almond Torte, I tried scones and cookies and rolls—more than enough to convince me that this place would be worth a visit at some point.

When Lisa first mentioned the cake, the lover of food within me automatically began searching for an explanation. I needed to know when this cake was born. Why it was unique to Pittsburgh. And, most importantly, how it was made.

And in the years that followed, I attempted to recreate the cake for Lisa’s birthday. After considering the cake I’d eaten and the recipe I found online I decided to make my version from bits and pieces of different recipes stretched across my library.

It’s not fully there, yet but it’s close.

Essentially, this post is my way of saying, get yourself a friend who loves the same things you love. One who will bring new things your way, make you want to try them—just because—and then show up on your doorstep with delicious surprises.

Oh yeah, and to visit Oakmont Bakery and try some Burnt Almond Torte if ever you find yourself in Pittsburgh.