Cozy up with this cardamom almond cake! This coffee cake is packed with cardamom, one of my favorite warm spices, and ground and slivered almonds. I've topped it with a simple almond cardamom streusel, but I've also tested it with just slivered almonds and sparkling sugar! This is the perfect weeknight cake to make since you don't need to pull out a stand mixer, you just need a few bowls! I've topped it with a simple maple glaze.
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Since my cardamom cake with brown butter cream cheese frosting (wow, that's a mouthful) is so popular, I thought it would be fun to make more of a coffee cake version!
This soft and moist almond cardamom cake was created by mixing my blueberry almond lemon cake and yogurt plum cake. Both of these cakes have a simple soft and fluffy, almost coffee cake-like texture, with a topping baked into the top.
I tested this recipe with the streusel but I also tested it with just sliced almonds and sparkling sugar, and honestly, both options work a treat! I also added a simple maple syrup glaze.
If you want even more spiced or brown butter recipes, try my brown butter cinnamon rolls or chai cake.
Why you'll love this recipe!
- No Mixer: no need to bring out a stand mixer for this recipe! You'll need a small saucepan to brown the butter, then just a couple of bowls and a whisk! Easy peasy.
- Cozy Warm Flavors: you get so many cozy warm flavors from the browned butter, cardamom and almonds. To me, this is the perfect fika cake (and if you don't know fika, it's Swedish for a time for a break to share cake and a cup of coffee) that you can enjoy any time of year.
Grab your ingredients
- Ground Almonds: the base of this recipe is made with a mixture of ground almonds (also known as almond flour, as long as you're using one that is light in color and very fine) and flour, so this isn't a 100% gluten-free cake! The ground almonds will make the cake softer and more tender while giving it a sweet almond taste.
- All-Purpose Flour: while we're adding a touch of almond flour, the majority of the structure of the cake is from the all-purpose flour.
- Almond Extract: to get more of a strong almond flavor, I add a dash of almond extract.
- Unsalted Butter: what I love about this recipe is by using melted brown butter, I don't need to use a stand mixer or handheld mixer! Using unsalted butter means we can control the level of salt in the recipe, but don't sweat it if you only have salted butter on hand.
- Buttermilk: now, usually I use buttermilk when I'm using baking soda since it reacts with the baking soda to make the baked good rise and make it lighter, but even with just baking powder, the buttermilk here will make the cake moist and a slight tangy flavor.
- Ground Cardamom: cardamom is one of my favorite spices to bake with. It's got the right amount of spice and warmth to it, but it's still different enough to cinnamon. This isn't the easiest spice to find (at least where I live!) so you might have to order it online.
- Slivered Almonds: I love adding slivered almonds to the streusel or to the top of the cake just before baking for even more almond flavor.
- Rolled Oats: adding rolled oats (or old-fashioned oats) to the crumble topping will make them even more crunchy - exactly what I want in a streusel topping!
- Brown Sugar: I love adding brown sugar to my streusel topping. I've tested this recipe with both light brown sugar and dark brown sugar, so either works.
Substitutions & Additions
- Buttermilk: swap out the buttermilk for an equal amount of sour cream.
- Almond Flour: almond flour is finer than ground almonds. Not sure what you've got? If it's light in color with no dark specks in it, it's almond flour. In the UK it's usually called ground almonds, but as long as it's light in color then it's almond flour! Nice and confusing. Almond meal is ground up almonds with the skin on, so that's darker in color and usually not fine.
- Topping: don't want to make a streusel? Just sprinkle over a quarter cup of slivered almonds and some sparkling sugar and call it a day.
How to Make This Recipe
- Step 1: Brown your butter. Place the butter in a small saucepan on the stove over medium-low heat. Let the butter melt, then it will start to foam and sputter. Stir occasionally until the milk solids turn light brown or golden and it smells nutty and toasted. Pour into a large bowl and let cool.
- Step 2: While the brown butter cools, mix the streusel ingredients. In a bowl, use your hands to smush the softened butter with the oats, sliced almonds, flour, cardamom, and brown sugar. It should start to clump together, you want to make sure it's completely moist! Set aside.
- Step 3: Preheat your oven to 350°F and grease and line an 8-inch springform pan or cake pan with parchment paper. Whisk the eggs, sugar, almond extract, and vanilla extract with the cooled brown butter until smooth.
- Step 4: In a separate bowl, whisk the flour with the ground almonds, cardamom powder, salt, and baking powder.
- Step 5: Add the dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk. Mix until just smooth, making sure not to overmix.
- Step 6: Pour the cake batter into the prepared cake pan. Sprinkle over the almond topping. Bake in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. After 10 minutes, remove from the cake pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.
Ella's Baking Tips
- Springform Pan: as you can see from these images, I'm using a regular cake pan. My 8-inch springform pan broke but I really wanted to get this recipe out! Now, you can use a regular cake pan but it'll be messier to get it out because when you flip the cake pan over, some of the streusel topping will fall off so keep that in mind!
- Streusel Topping: I find it easiest to make this crumble topping with my hands. I just keep smooshing (a technical word, I swear) the butter with the dry ingredients until there are no more dry patches left, you want all the oats and flour to be mixed with the butter.
Serving Suggestions
- Pumpkin Spice Latte: make it an extra cozy afternoon by enjoying a slice of this cardamom almond cake with a PSL courtesy of my pumpkin sauce for coffee recipe!
- Breakfast: this is the type of cake you can enjoy for breakfast! I definitely enjoyed it for breakfast after testing this recipe.
Storage & Freezing
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
To freeze, place in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. Let thaw in the fridge before enjoying!
Make these simple cake recipes next!
Made This Recipe?
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Thank you!
Ella
Recipe
Cardamom Almond Cake with Brown Butter
This cozy cardamom almond cake is made with brown butter and you don't need a mixer. It's covered in a cardamom streusel.
Equipment
- 1 8-inch springform pan or round cake pan
- Small Saucepan
- Bowls
- Whisk
- Measuring Spoons
Ingredients
Cardamom Almond Cake
- ½ cup (113 grams) unsalted butter
- 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
- 1 ¼ cup (150 grams) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (55 grams) ground almonds
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3 teaspoons cardamom
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 large eggs room temperature
- ½ cup (120 ml) buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
Cardamom Streusel
- ½ cup (60 grams) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (55 grams) light brown sugar
- ½ cup (40 grams) rolled oats
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- ¼ cup (23 grams) sliced almonds
- ¼ cup (56 grams) unsalted butter softened
Maple Glaze
- ½ cup (60 grams) confectioners' sugar sifted
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch salt
- 1 tablespoon heavy cream
Ella's Baking Tip!Weigh your ingredients with a kitchen scale for the best results!
Instructions
Cardamom Almond Cake
- Place the butter in a small saucepan on the stove over medium-low heat and let the butter melt.½ cup (113 grams) unsalted butter
- Once melted, the butter should begin to foam and sputter. Use a rubber spatula or wooden spoon to stir occasionally. You'll start to see white milk solids at the bottom of the pan. Once the butter stops sputtering, the milk solids should turn golden brown and it will smell nutty and toasted. Pour the brown butter (making sure you scrape all the little brown bits of butter out!) into a large bowl and let cool.
- While the brown butter cools, mix together all of the streusel ingredients in a small bowl. Use your fingers or a fork to smush the softened butter with the dry ingredients. It'll take a few minutes but you want it to form clumps and there should be no dry patches! Set aside.½ cup (60 grams) all-purpose flour, ¼ cup (55 grams) light brown sugar, ½ cup (40 grams) rolled oats, 1 teaspoon ground cardamom, ¼ cup (23 grams) sliced almonds, ¼ cup (56 grams) unsalted butter
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C. Grease an 8-inch springform pan and line with parchment paper.
- Whisk the eggs into the browned butter.2 large eggs
- Add the vanilla and almond extract along with the sugar1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon almond extract
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, ground almonds, cardamom, baking powder, and salt.1 ¼ cup (150 grams) all-purpose flour, ½ cup (55 grams) ground almonds, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 3 teaspoons cardamom, ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Add the flour in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk, starting and ending with the flour.½ cup (120 ml) buttermilk
- Pour the batter into the pan and then sprinkle your streusel on top.
- Bake for 40-50 minutes.
- Your cake is ready when a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
- Once the cake is cool, whisk the maple glaze ingredients together. If the glaze is too thick, add a drop more heavy cream or milk. If it's too thin, add more sifted icing sugar. Drizzle on top of your cake and enjoy!½ cup (60 grams) confectioners' sugar, 1 tablespoon maple syrup, ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract, pinch salt, 1 tablespoon heavy cream
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Notes
My recipes have been developed and tested in metric grams. I highly recommend using a weighing scale and measuring out your ingredients the metric way. I have provided a conversion to US cups but please note that I haven't tested the recipe with this method. Just click on 'US Customary' above the ingredients.
Salt: If you don’t have kosher salt, halve the amount of salt called for in the recipe. 1 teaspoon kosher salt = ½ teaspoon fine salt. Note that I'm using Diamond Crystal kosher salt and not Morton Salt which is saltier.
Buttermilk: swap out buttermilk for sour cream.
Topping: if you don't want to add the streusel topping, just sprinkle over ¼ cup of slivered almonds and some sparkling sugar.
Cake Pan: I recommend using a springform pan, but if you don't have one you can use a regular round pan. Just note that some of the streusel might come off when you flip it upside down on the cooling rack. Flip it upside down on the rack, then turn the cake right side up on the cooling rack.
Storage: Cover the cake tightly and keep it at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Freezing: Freeze for up to 2 months, let the cake defrost overnight in the fridge and then come to room temperature when you’re ready to eat it.
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment below! You can also tag me on Instagram @alpineella so I can see what you made!
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