Almond Tea Cakes (doctored cake mix)

These tea cakes are rich in almond flavor with the crunch of slivered almonds on top. They’re so easy to make because they start with a simple white cake mix. They’re perfect for an afternoon tea party or any time of day!

What is a Tea Cake?

As the name implies, a “tea” cake is a sweet treat meant to be eaten at tea time while sipping a cup of tea. These little cakes are easy to hold and don’t require a fork.

Tea time provides the perfect opportunity for dunking these treats (whether cookies or small cakes) into cups of hot tea. (Hey, if you haven’t tried it, don’t knock it!)

A tea cake is cookie-like in texture, solid enough for dunking. They can hold their own shape.

This almond tea cake recipe is an original recipe that I came up with on my own and I’m very proud of it. I just know you’re going to love it! This is one of those tea cake recipes you’re going to want to keep in your recipe box!

When is Tea Time?

According to Reference.com, Tea Time in England is from 3:00 – 5:00 p.m. There is some debate over what tea time is, exactly. Some would argue that it’s simple the evening meal. Others have romanticized the notion that it’s a special set-apart time for tea and sweets.

Where I live (in Texas) we don’t have a designated time for sweet treats or tea. Down here we’re more apt to grab a glass of ice cold sweet tea, which we’re happy to chug down to counteract the extreme heat.

And boy, do we know (and love) our sweets. They don’t have to be fancy, either. We’re just as likely to grab a Snickerdoodle or Chocolate Chip Cookie as a fancy tea cake. But when we’re offered something like these yummy Almond Tea Cakes we jump on the chance!

Are you ready to bake some tea cakes? No matter where you live or what time of day you consume them, you’re going to love these tasty treats! And best of all, they start with a box of white cake mix.

Cake mixes are easy to find and inexpensive. They also have a great shelf life, which makes them perfect to keep on hand!

Ingredients for Tea Cakes

You’ll find a full printable recipe at the bottom of this post. For now, here’s a quick glance at what you’ll need. No doubt you’ve already got most of these ingredients in your pantry or fridge. They’re simple ingredients.

What You’ll Need for the Tea Cakes

I love recipes that start with a boxed cake mix and you will, too!

• vanilla cake mix
• all purpose flour
• cold butter
• large egg
• heavy whipping cream (or whole milk)

Note: You can use any cake mix you wants: Pillsbury, Duncan Hines, Betty Crocker, etc. You can even use a sugar free cake mix or a gluten free cake mix.

What you’ll Need for the Filling

• almond flour
• granulated sugar
• large eggs (room temperature)
• salted room temperature butter
• all purpose flour
• pure almond extract
• powdered sugar for sprinkling
• sliced almonds for topping the tea cakes

How to Make Almond Tea Cakes

These were fun and easy to make. The process is almost like croissants, but without all of the work!

Start by preheating your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Prep your dough. Grate the cold butter and add it to your dry ingredients (flour, box of cake mix) and wet ingredients (egg and whipping cream) in a large bowl.

Work the ingredients until they form a dough. You can use a stand mixer with paddle attachment or dough hook. I started with a large serving fork and then worked it by hand.

Make the filling: In a separate mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer) combine the butter, sugar, eggs, almond extract, and almond flour. Whip until smooth and creamy. Set aside.

Prepare your work station. You’ll want to have flour on hand to help you roll out the dough.

Roll the dough into a large circle about 1/4 inch thick. It doesn’t have to be perfect.

Once you have your dough in a circle, cover it with the almond paste. Hold back about 1/4 of the paste for later.

Using a pizza cutter (or fondant cutter) divide your dough into triangles. Mine made 16 triangles.

Starting out the outside edge, roll up your triangles into croissant-shaped treats and place on a cookie sheet. (Make sure you’ve lined your baking sheet with parchment paper first.)

Remember that extra almond paste you saved? Spread a little on top of each pastry. When that’s done, add some sliced almonds. They’ll stick to the pastry easily with the almond paste.

Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 20-22 minutes or until golden brown.

Remove from oven and place your sheet pan on a wire rack to cool.

Remove from baking sheet and place on wire rack to continue cooling.

Sprinkle with powdered sugar. (This is an important part of the experience. You shouldn’t omit this step!)

Serve your almond pastries at tea time with your favorite hot tea! (I dunked mine in Constant Comment tea. Yum!)

Store in an airtight container. No need to refrigerate!

What to Expect from these Tea Cakes

These are scone-like–with a cakey, cookie-like texture. I’ve honestly never had anything like them so they’re a little hard to describe.

They’re definitely pastry-like, as well. So sweet and tasty and the almond paste (which works its way down into the dough as it bakes) is perfect.

And though you rolled these up like croissants, they don’t stay that way. The point of that exercise is to work the almond paste into the center of the tea cake.

Best of all, they have a great flavor that pairs well with tea! (Earl Grey, anyone?)

I think they would make sweet little wedding cakes. (Or wedding shower cakes.) They’re also terrific for a high tea!

See this recipe at

Full Plate Thursday 

Weekend Potluck

Sunday LinkUp

Variations on these Almond Tea Cakes

I’m thinking of ways to change this up next time, (though, to be honest, they were pretty perfect, just like they were!) Here are some things I might add:

• Out of whipping cream? Use almond milk to add additional almond flavor!
• Another substitution for whipping cream would be sour cream. If you go this route, you might think about making a lemon-flavored tea cake. Yum! (Add lemon juice instead of almond extract.)
• Pecan paste. Instead of an almond-based treat, I might go for a pecan paste with pecans on top. (I’m nuts about pecans, pun intended.)
• Chocolate chips. I mean. . .can you even imagine how good that would be? Chocolate chip tea cakes? Yum!
• Speaking of chocolate, you could always start with a chocolate cake mix for these. Chocolate and almond today sounds delish! (Use any cake flavor you like!)

Other Treats that Start with a White Cake Mix

I’ve been on a roll (pun intended) coming up with recipes like this one that start with a white cake mix. I’ve put together a full post listing them all. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Cake Mix Cinnamon Rolls: Light, crisp, and oh, so delicious! You’re going to want to make these right away!
• Easy Cake Mix Cherry Pies: I have no words to describe these, except. . .delicious!
• Easy Cake Mix Scones: I know, right? I’m so glad I thought of this one, folks. It’s now one of my new favorites!

There are so many cake mix recipes to enjoy! I hope you’ll follow me for more ideas.

Other Recipes that Call for Whipped Cream

• If you love whipped cream inspired treats you’re going to flip over my Old-Fashioned Pound Cake with Whipping Cream. It’s truly the best!
• Another whipped cream favorite is my Strawberry Lemonade Cake, which calls for a stabilized whipped cream.
• I also use a lot of whipped cream in my trifle, including my Delicious Mint Oreo Trifle, which is an all-time favorite in my family.

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Learn more about doctored cake mixes, the theme of this blog. 

For the master list of all doctored cake mix recipes on this site, visit Doctored Cake Mix Recipes, Master List. 

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That’s it for now, friends! I hope you’ve enjoyed this recipe for Almond Tea Cakes. This easy cake recipe is one of my new favorites!

I promise, you’re going to love these! (These were a big hit with my friend. She loved them so much she wanted more!)

Let me leave you with this sweet verse, one of my favorites.

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.

Romans 8:18 ESV

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About the Author

Janice Thompson is an author, baker, and all-around mischief maker! She has overcome a host of baking catastrophes, including a toppled wedding cake, to learn more about the baking process. Janice has published over 150 books for the Christian market but particularly enjoys writing recipes and baking devotions. To learn more about Janice or to drop her a note, visit her About the Author page.