Joanna Gaines Turned One of Her Favorite Cookies Into an ‘Elevated’ Cake

Celebrities are no different than the rest of us when it comes to their favorite treats—many of them are inspired by the desserts or flavors they enjoyed growing up. Glen Powell probably got his love of Butterfinger as a kid, and now he crushes the candy and uses it as an ice cream topper when he craves something sweet. Trisha Yearwood’s favorite blackberry cobbler came from her grandma. Reba McEntire loves her Mama’s Pineapple Upside-Down Cake so much, she included the recipe in a cookbook. 

Joanna Gaines recently shared one such favorite dessert with “People” and the sweet treat draws inspiration from the flavors of her childhood. It’s not the first time the “Magnolia Table” host has done this—she once created homemade SpagghetiOs that put a grown-up spin on the childhood favorite.

The Inspiration Behind Joanna Gaines’ Almond Butter Cake

Gaines, whose mother is from Korea, developed a cake inspired by the almond cookies she loved as a kid. Growing up, her family would get them when dining at their favorite Asian restaurant. She recalls that she and her sister would eat as fast as they could, then wait for the platter of almond cookies to arrive at the table.

To recreate the flavor of those cookies in cake form and, as she says, “elevate” them, she created an almond butter cake with a honey glaze and shared the recipe on the Magnolia website. 

The single-layer cake, baked in a springform pan, is simple to make, calling for butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, almond extract, flour, baking soda, salt, and buttermilk. It’s as straightforward of a cake recipe as you can get. Once the baked cake cools, she pours a glaze made with butter, honey, powdered sugar, milk, and salt over it and sprinkles the top with toasted sliced almonds. 

It’s easy to see why we may end up baking this full-of-flavor cake all through fall. It’s simple to make and works as a dessert or a coffee cake on a lazy Sunday morning accompanied by a hot cup of coffee or tea. We’re not saying it should replace the beautiful apple pies and pumpkin breads, but it certainly deserves to be an addition to your autumn dessert spread.