Published on February 28, 2024. Published by Megan
Jump to Recipe
Cardamom cake is a traditional Swedish cardamom cake. This simple cardamom dessert has a buttery soft crumb and with a crunchy almond topping. Make this wonderfully easy cardamom cake recipe to pair with coffee or tea for your afternoon fika.
Jump to:
- Why Should You Make This Recipe
- Ingredients
- How To Make
- How To Store, Freeze, Thaw and Serve
- M’s Expert Tips
- FAQs
- Other Simple Cakes to Try
- Cardamom Cake Recipe
Why Should You Make This Recipe
I absolutely adore simple cakes that come together quickly and easily. They make the best cakes to enjoy with friends and family for any occasion. My Almond Cake, Orange Olive Oil Cake and French Apple Cake are just a few of my favorite simple cakes. If you’re a fan of fika, a practice of taking time out of your day to enjoy coffee, tea and a bite of something sweet with friends and family, this traditional Swedish cardamom dessert is for you.
- Layers of flavors and textures. From the moist, soft and fluffy, vanilla and cardamom scented cake, to the crunchy almond topping, this easy sponge cake will delight your senses.
- Easy to make, bake and eat. This cardamom vanilla cake tastes like you just bought it from a lovely bakery, but is incredibly quick and easy to make at home.
Ingredients
This cardamom vanilla cake recipe requires just a handful of simple ingredients to make and you probably already have them in your pantry and fridge. Here’s what you’ll need.
- Dry Ingredients: Gather all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground cardamom and salt.
- Wet Ingredients: Gather granulated sugar, lemon zest, butter, eggs, vanilla extract, buttermilk and sliced almonds.
Substitutions
Here are my recommended substitutions to make this simple swedish cake if you need them.
- All purpose flour: To make this cake gluten free, use a good 1-1 gluten free flour. I recommend using the one from Bob’s Red Mill. Make sure the cake mix includes xanthium gum, as this essentially replaces the gluten found in traditional flour.
- Baking Powder and Baking Soda: These both act as leaveners in this cardamom and almond cake.
- Ground Cardamom: This is an essential ingredient for this cardamom cake recipe. If you need to swap cardamom for another spice, I recommend allspice, cinnamon or nutmeg. This cake recipe uses a full tablespoon of cardamom, so I recommend using a blend of up to a tablespoon of the ground spices listed.
- Granulated Sugar: This almond flavored cake calls for granulated sugar, but maple sugar would also work well to make this refined sugar free.
- Lemon Zest: Lemon pairs so beautifully with cardamom and brings a touch of brightness to the cake. Orange makes a great substitute for lemon in this cake.
- Unsalted Butter: Vegan butter or plant based can also be used in place of regular unsalted butter.
- Eggs: This recipe has not been tested without eggs.
- Buttermilk: This ingredient creates a lovely moist crumb. Use an equivalent amount of full fat whole milk greek yogurt as a substitute.
- Vanilla Extract: Both provide a boost of flavor and is highly recommended for this cardamom and lemon cake.
- Sliced Almonds: Traditional Swedish cardamom cake has a crunchy topping. For this recipe, I used sliced almonds. Feel free to use ground almonds or ground bread crumbs.
Variation
- Cardamom Bundt Cake: Grease a 10 cup capacity bundt pan. Prepare the cake recipe as written, but omit the sliced almond layer. Bake the cardamom bundt cake for 40 - 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs and the sides of the cake pull slightly away from the edge of the cake. Serve topped with powdered sugar or a vanilla glaze.
- Vanilla Glaze: Whisk 1 cup powdered sugar with 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste and 1 - 2 tablespoons (15 - 30 ml) milk.
- Rose Water: Add ¼ teaspoon (up to ½ teaspoon) of rose water at the same time as the vanilla extract to make this a lovely cardamom and rose cake.
How To Make
Learn how to make cardamom cake in a few easy steps.
- Preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Grease and line the bottom of a 9- inch (23 cm) springform or cake pan with parchment paper. Lightly grease the parchment on the bottom of the cake. Scatter 3 tablespoons (38 g) granulated sugar, followed by about ¾ cup (90 g) of sliced almonds across the bottom of the lined pan. Set aside for now.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground cardamom and salt together until well combined.
- In a large mixing bowl fitted with paddle attachment, beat the sugar and lemon zest together until they are the consistency of wet sand. Beat butter and lemon sugar together until light and fluffy. This takes about 2-3 minutes on medium speed. On low, beat in the eggs and vanilla extract until smooth and well combined. Alternating dry ingredients and buttermilk, mix the dry ingredients and buttermilk into the wet ingredients (dry, buttermilk, dry, buttermilk, dry). Repeat until all the ingredients are just combined.
- Evenly spread the cardamom cake batter into the prepared pan. Bake the cardamom spiced cake for 38-42 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Cool the pan in the pan for 5 - 10 minutes. Gently release the side of the springform pan and carefully invert the cake onto a serving plate or onto a cooling rack so the almond “bottom” is now on top. Gently pull back the parchment paper if needed. Top with powdered sugar, slice and enjoy!
How To Store, Freeze, Thaw and Serve
- Store: Place the the cake in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Then the cake should be transferred to the fridge for up to another 1 - 2 days.
- Freeze: Make sure the simple cardamom cake is completely cooled to room temperature. Individually wrap the cake or each slice in plastic wrap and place in a ziplock bag. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Thaw: The easiest and tastiest way to thaw your moist cardamom vanilla cake is to let it sit out at room temperature for at least two hours. Enjoy at room temperature or microwave until it’s your preferred temperature.
- Serve: This from scratch cardamom (Kardemummakaka) cake is best served with fresh fruit such as raspberries, a creamy custard, freshly whipped cream, strawberry glaze or even ice cream.
M’s Expert Tips
- Zest the lemon directly into the sugar. This allows the oils from the lemon to flavor the cake.
- Bring cold ingredients to room temperature. This allows the ingredients to mix together more evenly which requires less mixing, resulting in soft, fluffy, moist and tender cake.
- Measure the flour properly. I highly recommend using a food scale to get perfectly measured ingredients every time.
- Don’t overmix the batter. Always use the lowest speed on your electric mixer or mix in the dry ingredients by hand. Make sure to mix the dry ingredients into the wet until just combined.
- Use the baking times as a guide. All ovens vary and baking times should be used as a guide. As a general rule, when the cake becomes fragrant, it’s a good idea to start checking. Begin checking on the cardamom sponge cake at the minimum baking time. A toothpick inserted into the center of the cake should come out with a few moist crumbs or clean.
FAQs
What does cardamom taste like in baking?
It brings a warmth, slightly peppery flavor, along with notes of fruit, citrus and pine.
What spice can replace cardamom?
A few spices can be used to replace cardamom in most baking recipes. Ground cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice are the best substitutes for cardamom.
What is the best cardamom to bake with?
For this recipe I used ground cardamom. If you would like to grind cardamom pods, I recommend green cardamom pods.
Other Simple Cakes to Try
- Limoncello Mascarpone Cake
- Blueberry Coffee Cake
- Lemon Ricotta Cake
If you try this Cardamom Cake recipe please rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Doing so helps other readers decide if this is a great recipe to bake. Don’t forget to tag me on Instagram using @olivesnthyme so I can see what you’re baking! - M
Cardamom Cake Recipe
Megan
Cardamom cake is a traditional Swedish cardamom cake. This simple cardamom dessert has a buttery soft crumb and with a crunchy almond topping. Make this wonderfully easy cardamom cake recipe to pair with coffee or tea for your afternoon fika.
5 from 1 vote
print itpin it
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 35 minutes mins
Cooling Time 10 minutes mins
Total Time 55 minutes mins
Course Dessert
Cuisine American, Swedish
Servings 8 servings
Equipment
1 sheet parchment paper
1 stand mixer with paddle attachment or electric hand mixer with beaters
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (90 g) sliced almonds
- 2 - 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 cups (240 g) all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 - 3 teaspoons ground cardamom
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 lemon, zested
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk or keifr yogurt
- 2 - 4 tablespoons powdered sugar for topping, optional
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 F(180 C).Grease and line the bottom of a 9- inch (23 cm) springform or cake panwith parchment paper. Lightly grease the parchment on the bottom of the cake.
Scatter 3 tablespoons (38 g) granulated sugar, followed by about ¾ cup (90 g) of sliced almonds across the bottom of the lined pan.Set aside for now.
¾ cup (90 g) sliced almonds, 2 - 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, ground cardamom and salttogether until well combined.
2 cups (240 g) all purpose flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, ¼ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon salt, 2 - 3 teaspoons ground cardamom
In a large mixing bowl fitted with paddle attachment,beat the sugar and lemon zest togetheruntil they are the consistency of wet sand.Beat butter and lemon sugar together until light and fluffy.This takes about 2-3 minutes on medium speed. On low, beat in the eggs and vanilla extractuntil smooth and well combined.
1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar, 1 lemon, zested, ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, room temperature, 2 large eggs, room temperature, 1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
Alternating dry ingredients and buttermilk, mix the dry ingredients and buttermilk into the wet ingredients (dry, buttermilk, dry, buttermilk, dry).Repeat until all the ingredients are just combined.
1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk or keifr yogurt
Evenly spread the cardamom cake batterinto the prepared pan.Bake the cardamom spiced cake for 35-42 minutesor until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
Cool the pan in the pan for 5 - 10 minutes.Gently release the side of the springform pan and carefully invert the cake onto a serving plate or onto a cooling rack so the almond “bottom” is now on top. Gently pull back the parchment paper if needed.
Top with powdered sugar, slice and enjoy!
2 - 4 tablespoons powdered sugar for topping, optional
Notes
Store: Place the the cake in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Then the cake should be transferred to the fridge for up to another 1 - 2 days.
Serve: This from scratch Cardamom (Kardemummakaka) cake is best served with fresh fruit such as raspberries, a creamy custard, freshly whipped cream, strawberry glaze or even ice cream.
See Variations section of the blog post to make this as a Cardamom bundt cake.
Keyword Cardamom Cake, Cardamom Cake Recipe, Cardamom Dessert
did you make this recipe?tag @olivesnthyme on Instagram
More Simple Cakes
- Blueberry Ricotta Cake
- Carrot Bundt Cake
- Limoncello Mascarpone Cake
- Chocolate Fudge Cake
