Almond cake
6 ounces almond paste
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup sifted cake flour
6 large egg whites
Pinch of cream of tartar

Raspberry filling & meringue

5 cups fresh raspberries
1/3 cup seedless raspberry preserves
3 large egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

INSTRUCTIONS:

To make the cake:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line the bottoms of two 9-inch round cake pans with
parchment paper. Lightly coat the paper and pan side with nonstick cooking spray, dust
with flour, tapping out the excess, and set aside.

In a food processor, combine almond paste, 1/4 cup of the sugar, salt and 1/3 cup water.
Process until smooth. Add flour and pulse just until combined. Transfer the mixture to a
large bowl.

In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar with an electric mixer on high
speed until frothy. While continuing to beat, slowly add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar.
Continue to beat on high speed until soft peaks form.

Whisk one fourth of the beaten egg whites into the almond paste mixture lighten it.
With a rubber spatula, fold in the remaining egg whites just until combined.

Spread the batter in the prepared pans. Bake for 15 t 18 minutes, or until the cake layers
are just beginning to color and feel firm when lightly pressed in the center.

Dust a piece of parchment paper with confectioners' sugar. Run a knife around the
outside edge of each cake layer and invert onto the paper. Lift off the rounds of
parchment paper from the cake bottoms. Let the cake layers cool to room temperature.

To fill cake & make raspberry meringue:

In a saucepan over medium heat, stir 3 cups of the raspberries until juicy. Transfer to a
fine sieve set over a bowl. Press through with a rubber spatula, extracting all the pulp,
and discard the seeds.

Return the puree to the saucepan. Cook over medium low heat, stirring, until thick and
reduced to 1/2 cup, 5 or 10 minutes. Set aside 1/4 cup of the puree. Add raspberry
preserves to the puree remaining in the saucepan. Whisk over low heat until smooth
and slightly reduced, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl to cool to room
temperature.

Set aside about 30 of the best looking raspberries to use as a garnish. Gently fold the
rest of the raspberries into the cooled raspberry preserve mixture.

With a wide spatula, invert one of the cake layers onto a heatproof serving plate. Spread
the raspberry mixture evenly over top. Set the second cake layer on top. Set aside.

Bring about 1 inch of water to a gentle simmer in a saucepan. In a heatproof mixing
bowl large enough to fit over the saucepan, combine egg whites, sugar, and cream of
tartar. Set the bowl over the simmering water and beat with an electric mixer on low
speed, moving the beaters around the bowl constantly, until an instant read
thermometer registers 140 degrees. Increase the mixer speed to high and continue
beating over the heat for a full 3 1/2 minutes. Remove the bowl from the heat and beat
until cooled to room temperature, about 5 minutes. On low speed, beat in the reserved
1/4 cup of raspberry puree.

Preheat the broiler. Put abut 2/3 cup of the meringue into a pastry bag fitted with a
medium star tip. Spread the remaining meringue on the sides and top of the cake.
Smooth the sides and top with a long metal spatula. Pipe swirls of meringue around the
edge of the cake.

With the cake about 2 inches below the heat source, broil until the top is lightly
browned, about 1 minute. Let cool then decorate with the reserved raspberries. Just
before serving, lightly dust the top with confectioners' sugar.

Seems like a lot of steps, but it is quite simple to create. There is only 245 calories per
serving, 5 grams fat (0.5 gram saturated fat) So enjoy this dessert by one the best pastry chef in the bay area.