Runeberg's Torte

Nov 3, 2026 · By VanillaGoods

Baking Cakes cupcakes Easy

Runeberg's torte is a small Finnish cylinder cake of almond-scented crumb soaked in rum syrup and topped with a ring of icing filled with raspberry jam. Makes 12 small cakes in about 52 minutes.

Prep 30 min

Cook 22 min

Total 52 min

Yield 12 small cakes

Ingredients

Adjust yield

small cakes

⅔ cup (150 g)unsalted butter, softened
½ cup (100 g)granulated sugar, for the cakes
2 (100 g)eggs, room temperature
1 ¼ cups (150 g)all-purpose flour
⅔ cup (60 g)fine dry breadcrumbs or gingerbread crumbs
⅔ cup (60 g)ground almonds
1 ¼ tsp (5 g)baking powder
¾ tsp (2 g)ground ginger
1 pinch (1 g)fine salt
½ cup (120 ml)whole milk, for the cakes
½ tsp (3 ml)almond extract
7 tbsp (100 ml)water
½ cup (100 g)granulated sugar, for the rum syrup
2 tbsp (30 ml)dark rum
⅔ cup (75 g)powdered sugar
2 ½ tsp (12 ml)whole milk, for the topping
3 tbsp (60 g)raspberry jam, thick, seedless

Fresh ingredient guides

Baking tools for this recipe

Convert to grams Scale it Change the pan

Instructions

Heat the oven to 350 F (175 C). Grease a 12-cup muffin tin or small cylinder molds very well and dust with breadcrumbs.
Beat the butter and sugar 4 minutes until light. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the almond extract.
Whisk the flour, crumbs, ground almonds, baking powder, ginger and salt. Fold into the butter mixture in two additions, alternating with the milk, just until combined.
Fill each cup about three-quarters full and bake 20 to 22 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.
While they bake, simmer the water and sugar 3 minutes, then stir in the rum. Brush or spoon the warm syrup over the hot cakes, let them absorb it and cool in the pan 10 minutes.
Turn out and cool fully. Stir the powdered sugar with the milk into a thick icing and pipe a ring around the edge of each top.
Fill the center of each ring with a spoonful of raspberry jam.

Tips

Grease and crumb the molds well so the cakes release.
Soak while the cakes are still warm.
Keep the icing thick so the ring holds its shape.
Good with coffee.

Made this?

Log it to keep your bakes, ratings and notes together in My Kitchen.

Be the first to share one.

Recipe FAQ

How long does it take to make runeberg's torte?

Plan on 30 minutes of prep and 22 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes 12 small cakes.

How should I store runeberg's torte?

Store airtight at room temperature 3 days or refrigerate up to 5 days.

Can I make runeberg's torte ahead?

It is at its best the day it is made; prepare it a few hours before serving.

Runeberg's torte is a Finnish almond and rum cake named for the national poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg, and is eaten around his birthday on February 5. Serve it with coffee.

Estimated · per serving

Nutrition

Per serving = 1 of 12 servings this recipe makes.

293 Calories / serving

14.2g Fat

32.9g Carbs

4.4g Protein

19.1g Sugar

Whole recipe (12 servings): ~3516 cal · 170g fat · 395g carbs · 53g protein · 229g sugar

Estimated values per serving, calculated from standard ingredient data. Not verified Nutrition Facts; actual values vary with brands, measurements, and preparation.