Oloroso Sherry/ Mini Bundt Cake/ Marcona Almonds

One signature of our Sunken City Supper Club is a Sherry Course. We’re in love with Sherry! We tested this mini sherry Bundt cake with sherry glaze, garnished a sprig of rosemary, paired it with roasted and salted Spanish Marcona almonds as we sipped Oloroso sherry. Bingo!  Sweet, salty, crunchy, nutty, creamy, toasty…


Last December I was contacted by Challenge Dairy’s Marketing Team to see if I might want to receive a sample, cook with their butter, and write about it on Taste With The Eyes. Happy to, especially since Challenge Butter is the brand I use. Back then I shared these delightful Roasted Rainbow Carrots with Miso Butter (recipe here).

Roasted Rainbow Carrots with Miso Butter

Recently the folks at Challenge Dairy paired up with the folks at Nordic Ware and shipped out some new goodies. I was especially excited to receive the adorable Bundt Tea Cake & Candy Mold, Challenge Butter coupons (available here, just click on your state) and a Bundt cookbook! Cookbooks are always welcome…thanks so much!

Jupiter aligned with Mars! As we were looking for something tasty to pair with Oloroso Sherry at our upcoming affair, I came across a recipe for Almond Sherry Cake in my new Bundt cookbook! And not being an advanced baker, it is my kind of cake recipe; it uses a mix!

The original recipe calls for sliced almonds and a streusel filling. I modified the recipe to serve as mini cakes:

  • 1 pkg. 18 oz.yellow cake mix
  • 4 large eggs
  • 3/4 c. cream sherry
  • 3/4 c. vegetable oil
  • 1 pkg.  3.5 oz. instant vanilla pudding
  • fresh grated nutmeg

Lightly coat mini Bundt pan with non-stick baking spray. In a large bowl combine all ingredients. Mix at low speed one minute, then at medium speed 3 minutes. Spoon into pan and bake at 350° for about 15- 20 minutes.

Sherry Glaze

Three Ingredients: Cream Sherry, Powdered Sugar, and Challenge Premium Butter

Mix the following ingredients together. Add a teaspoon or two of hot water to get the right consistency to drizzle over the mini cakes. We use a less expensive (but still tasty) cream sherry in the recipes/ serve with a higher end sherry for sipping.

  • 1 c. powdered sugar
  • 1/4 c. melted butter
  • 2 T. cream sherry


Bodega Dios Baco NV Oloroso Sherry, Jerez, Spain

Aromas of nuts, vanilla and caramel.

Rich nutty semi-sweet creamy flavor.

Great balance between sweet and dry.

For more on delicious Vinos de Jerez, please visit the Bodega Dios Baco website here.


For an extra kick we plan to add a few slices of shaved Spanish Manchego cheese on the plate when we serve these at our party.

UPDATE: Read about our Sunken City Supper Club Springtime Jazz Feast event here!

24 thoughts on “Oloroso Sherry/ Mini Bundt Cake/ Marcona Almonds”

  1. These sound very good and I’ll try that recipe. I like sherry a lot, lately I have been drinking, occasionally, Pedro Ximenez, the dark very sweet sherry. I used it when making my fresh fig jam. I added a cherimoya to the figs and some Pedro Ximenez. It gave the jam a very good flavor.

  2. And THEN you added the Manchego cheese. You had me with the bundt cake. I use a vegan butter substitute so must check out Challenge butter – haven’t seen that one around. I love small desserts – a huge restaurant portion is always too much – these are perfect. The sweet taste of sherry… with sherry…. a few bites. Those divine Marcona almonds and THEN you added cheese. I’ll be here Sunday. Have fun!

    1. Thanks Claudia- yep, it was a winner for sure!
      I adore that little cake pan, my sized desserts, I am turned off by huge dessert portions too.
      LL

  3. The mini bundt cake looks delicious. I can imagine how good it must taste with the almonds. Looking forward to your fazz fest post.

  4. what grows together goes together, and you’ve definitely got an Iberian trifecta going on here. I love your pairing of sweet (bundt/oloroso) and salty marcona almonds, combined with the variety of textural contrasts, there’s so much to like about this plate. I should also commend you on a daring combination of dessert and cheese courses. In UK, the debate always used to be which ought to come first dessert or cheese (my preference is for sweets before fromage), but you have encouraged your guests to figure it out for themselves, and diffused any potential conflict with the toasty flavors of oloroso – one of our favorite dessert wines.

    1. Hi Jonny – thanks for your thoughtful comment. We were tickled with how this dessert was received. A real winner. I plan to make several variations on the theme. YAY for Sherry!
      LL

  5. I wished I could reach into the screen and steal that little bundtle of joy! 😉

    Lori Lynn,
    that bundt cake on the cover of your new book looks so great! Do you know where the bundt cake form comes from? I would love to order it. Thank you!

  6. Hello! I found your website and this recipe while searching for sherry-related dessert recipes. This weekend we are hosting a tapas night at our home, as a part of a wine club to which we belong, and we will be making tapas and tasting Spanish wines. I plan to make these little bundts as our dessert. Regrettably, my local wine vendors do not carry the Oloroso you recommended; they do however carry a variety of sherries by Lustau. I noticed that you’ve tasted the Palo Cortado and the Dry Amontillado; have you tasted any others? Are there any you would particularly recommend as a good match to this dish? Your assistance would be appreciated!!

    1. Hi Terri – sounds like a great party! Remember the sherry in the cake is an inexpensive (sweet) Cream Sherry, we use Harvey’s. As for pairing, we like Oloroso with just a hint of sweetness, great for dessert. Amontillado is drier and a bit nutty, which would also work. Fino would be too dry, Cream sherry would be too sweet. We like all the Lustau sherries… Good luck, please let me know how it goes.
      LL

      1. Thanks! My local store only carries 3 Olorosos, and the other two are out of my price range (I’ll need 2 bottles to please 9 people with decent pours). The Lustau Oloroso that they offer is the Don Nuno which I was worried would be too dry, but it sounds like dry can work? Lustau reviews the Don Nuno as “Mahogany in colour, with penetrating smoky aromas. Reminiscent of dark chocolate and walnuts in the mouth. Intense and concentrated finish, lightened by a tangy acidity. Ideal with game, Osso Bucco and other meats. Also as a digestif.”

        Maybe I’ll get a bottle of that and a bottle of the Amontillado and we’ll have little tastes of each…

        Thanks for the input! I’ll post again after the party.

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