History

Mallorca has grown almonds since the Moorish period, and gató is what the island does with them. There is no flour in the cake, only ground almonds, whipped eggs, sugar and lemon zest, which gives a dense, damp crumb. It is served in a wedge with almond ice cream melting over it, a pairing that Palma restaurants treat as non-negotiable. Celler Sa Premsa lists it as the standard finish to a Mallorcan meal, and it is naturally gluten free.

Common allergens: Nuts, Egg

Make it at home

Yield Serves 8Hands-on 20 minTotal 1 hrDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 250g ground almonds
  • 6 eggs, separated
  • 250g caster sugar
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • Pinch of salt
  • Icing sugar, to finish

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 170C and line a 24cm springform tin.
  2. Beat the yolks with 150g of the sugar until pale and thick.
  3. Fold in the ground almonds, lemon zest and cinnamon.
  4. Whisk the whites with the salt to soft peaks, then add the remaining sugar and whisk to a glossy meringue.
  5. Fold the meringue into the almond base in three additions, keeping as much air as you can.
  6. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes until set with a slight wobble, then cool in the tin.
  7. Dust with icing sugar and serve each wedge with almond ice cream.

Tip from the editors. It should stay damp in the middle. A dry gató has been baked ten minutes too long.

Where to eat gató d'ametlla

Gató d'ametlla in Palma

Celler Sa Premsa ★ 4.0

Spanish€€casco-antiguoMon-Sat 12:00-16:00, 19:30-23:30; closed Sun

Celler Sa Premsa has poured from wine barrels near Palma's Mercat de l'Olivar since 1958, serving arròs brut, sopes mallorquines and gató almond cake.

Try: Mallorcan celler cooking

Order: Arròs brut, then gató almond cake with almond ice cream.

Tip: The set lunch is the cheapest route into a proper Mallorcan celler meal in central Palma.

Plaça del Bisbe Berenguer de Palou 8, 07003 Palma

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