Almond Chocolate Chip Cake Loaf

Almond Chocolate Chip Cake Loaf is a moist and easy dessert to make. This recipe requires buttermilk, but I’ve created a substitute using ingredients you most likely already have lying around.

A couple weeks ago, I needed chocolate chips for a recipe (that I’m saving for later), but not a whole bag. This weekend, in an effort to get rid of them, I looked for chocolate chip cake recipes. I found one that looked great–except it had no instructions. And I was missing a few ingredients.

I don’t know about you, but I never have buttermilk. I usually avoid recipes that call for it, because I know it will just sit in my fridge unused until it expires (and my freezer space isn’t great). So instead of wasting money and food, I use a substitution.

Despite its name, buttermilk is not a buttered milk. It’s actually made by adding bacteria to gently curdle the milk (like making cheese or yogurt, but not as harsh). The bacteria creates lactic acid, which lowers the pH of the milk and helps the proteins and fat stick together. Since I almost always have whole fat milk and lemon juice at hand, I used those to achieve the same thing.

To create one cup of buttermilk, all you have to do is mix together 1 cup of whole milk and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice (or vinegar). The acid will cause the milk to begin curdling, so let it sit for 30-60 seconds. And voila! Buttermilk!

For different measurements, you will obviously halve or double the ingredients as needed. I only needed 1/2 cup of buttermilk, which is reflected by the ingredients list for this loaf.

Almond Chocolate Chip Cake Loaf

• 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsps almond extract
• 1/2 cup milk (whole fat is best)
• 1 1/2 tsps lemon juice
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• dark chocolate morsels and almond slivers for topping (optional)

Step 01: Preheat oven to 375F. Cream together the sugar and butter. Add the eggs and almond extract.

Step 02: In a cup, mix together the milk and the lemon juice. Let it sit for about 30-60 seconds. Pour into the bowl with the rest of the wet ingredients.

Step 03: Blend in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda until well-combined. Fold in the semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Step 04: Pour into a greased loaf pan. Top with dark chocolate morsels and almond slivers, if desired. (I had no almond slivers, actually, but they would be a wonderful addition.)

Step 05: Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 20 minutes before removing. Store in an air-tight container.

This bread was delicious. The edges turned out a little dry, but I think it’s the way I stored it. And topping it with the dark chocolate chips was a good idea. I debated on not doing that at all or using the semi-sweet…but the morsels really did it for me. If I had to change one thing, I would have added more chocolate to the inside. Zach probably disagrees. 😛

Not a fan of almonds? Use vanilla extract instead. (Or experiment with something you think might sound good…and let me know how it worked out for you in the comments!) 

Almond Chocolate Chip Cake Loaf

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Ingredients

• 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsps almond extract
• 1/2 cup milk (whole fat is best)
• 1 1/2 tsps lemon juice
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• dark chocolate morsels and almond slivers for topping (optional)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375F. Cream together the sugar and butter. Add the eggs and almond extract.

In a cup, mix together the milk and the lemon juice. Let it sit for about 30-60 seconds. Pour into the bowl with the rest of the wet ingredients.

Blend in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda until well-combined. Fold in the semi-sweet chocolate chips.

Pour into a greased loaf pan. Top with dark chocolate morsels and almond slivers, if desired. (I had no almond slivers, actually, but they would be a wonderful addition.)

Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 20 minutes before removing. Store in an air-tight container.

Almond Chocolate Chip Cake Loaf was last modified: June 16th, 2018 by Chelsey