Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Cardamom cake, as requested

Maybe my #1 cake. Maybe.
Cardamom cake was the first dessert I made when I started this blog and I've made it many times since because it is easy, elegant, exotic and awesomely delicious. The recipe comes from Niloufer Ichaporia King's My Bombay Kitchen. Although this is a Parsi cookbook, the recipe is Swedish. People who dislike cardamom will dislike this cake intensely.

butter for the pan
3 tablespoons sugar
sliced unblanched almonds, 1/3 to 1/2 cup
4 large eggs
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 1/3 sticks unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 tablespoon cardamom seeds
1 1/3 cups flour
pinch of salt

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously butter a 9 inch springform pan and sprinkle with the sugar. Shake so the bottom and sides are covered with sugar. Don't worry about extra sugar on the bottom. Now sprinkle the almonds across the bottom of the pan.

2. With a mixer, handheld or stand, beat the eggs,and sugar until thick, pale, and tripled in volume -- a few minutes. Bruise the cardamom seeds in a mortar.

3. Gently fold the flour and salt into the egg and sugar mixture, then add the butter and cardamom. Pour into the pan.

4. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the cake tests done. Cool for 5 minutes, then remove from the pan. Serve cool. This cake is wonderful the next day.

17 comments:

  1. You tipped me off to this recipe and cookbook and I'm forever in your debt. I, too, adore that cake and my Indian husband loves loves loves it.

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  2. Here's one of my favorite cake recipes, Walnut Cake:
    http://www.gourmet.com/recipes/2000s/2009/04/walnut-jam-cake

    I've never made it with the jam and whipped cream and don't think it needs it, though perhaps it's even better that way.

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  3. That walnut cake looks like my kind of cake. I'm going to try that!

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  4. Any recommendations on how much ground cardamom to swap in if I don't have cardamom seeds?

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  5. anonymous 7:15 -- I wish I had an answer, but I don't. I think the bruised seeds are crucial. Powdered cardamom would probably be too intense.

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  6. I will have to try this. The vegetarian place down the street has the most wonderful cardamon cookies. The cookies with a cup of chai make everything better.

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  7. I don't have a mortar, so do you have a suggestion of how to bruise the seeds? I was thinking my rolling pin. Thoughts?

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  8. Julia -- I think just put them in a plastic bag and hit them with a rolling pin. They should stay basically whole.

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  9. Awesome! I appreciate it. Bashing food with a rolling pin sounds like stress relief to me! Thanks. :)

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  10. About ground cardamom, here is a quote from Wikipedia.

    "For recipes requiring whole cardamom pods, a generally accepted equivalent is 10 pods equals 1½ teaspoons of ground cardamom."

    Hope that helps.

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  11. How many grams is a stick of butter please?

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  12. I finally made this cake today - it is lovely.

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  13. One of my favourite cakes in the world.

    For any UK bakers, here's the equivalents:

    150g butter
    160g flour
    300g sugar
    (I omit the almonds, so don't know the equivalent...I guess enough to coat the bottom in a single layer)

    Cook at gas mark 4 (if you're on gas)

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  14. I will have to try this one. most wonderful cardamon cookies. The cookies with a cup of chai make everything better.
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