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This delicious chocolate and cardamom cake is super fragrant, totally delicious and easy to make. Combined with the chocolate ganache is it super decadent too.
Table of contents
Why I Love This Recipe
There is just something about the smell and flavor of cardamom (like in these kanelbullar with cardamom or these delicious apple pies with cardamom) that I cannot resist. And in this cake it is the best! Combined with the rich chocolate, the pieces of chopped chocolate, hazelnuts and the bright green pistachio, this is really one of my favorite cake recipes.
Recipe Ingredients
- cardamom pods – I used the pods here (ground in a pestle and mortar) and not the ready-ground cardamom. Both will work, but I find the flavor of the pods more subtle plus when you use them freshly ground the flavor is much more vibrant. Use the green cardamom and not the black ones. If you’re using ground cardamom use about 1 to 1,5 teaspoon max.
- self-rising flour – this can be replaced by using all-purpose flour in combination with baking powder.
- chocolate – this recipe uses both cocoa powder and dark chocolate, making it extra chocolately
- hazelnuts – I love adding hazelnuts, but you can also replace this with walnuts, more pistachio or leave it out entirely.
- sugar – I used light brown sugar, but dark brown sugar works as well here
How To Make The Chocolate Cardamom Cake
Making the cake is pretty straight forward. You start by creaming the unsalted butter and the sugar together. This works best if the butter is at room temperature. I like to do this in the bowl of a stand mixer as that works easiest but you can use a regular large bowl with an electric mixer if you prefer. Once the butter starts to look creamy and light you add the eggs one by one. Make sure they are incorporated properly before adding the next egg in.
Now – using a sieve – add the flour and the cocoa powder to your bowl and fold it through your batter. Add the hazelnuts at this stage too.
Chop your dark chocolate and add the whole milk to the flour mixture. Don’t add all the milk in one go. Do it in stages and incorporate each bit before moving on to the next.
Next, brush a springform pan with some butter or oil, cover with parchment paper, and pour in your chocolate batter. If you prefer, you can also brush the baking tin with butter and dust it with all-purpose flour. Shake off the excess flour and then pour the batter in. That will have a smoother result than using parchment paper.
Place in the oven and bake for around 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Let the cake cool completely on a cooling rack before you move on to the next step.
How To Make Chocolate Ganache
The chocolate ganache is poured over the top of the cake, making it super rich and delicious. You could potentially leave the ganache off and just serve the chocolate cardamom cake with whipped cream instead.
For making the dark chocolate ganache you use a double boiler. Break the remaining chocolate in a medium bowl and add the 50 gram of butter. Let it slowly melt together and once smooth let it cool a little bit. Smooth it over your chocolate cardamom cake and sprinkle with some chopped pistachio’s.
I actually think this should be called a chocolate frosting as to my knowledge a ganache is usually made with milk and chocolate. Which you can also do too. In that case you use about 100 ml of heavy cream and 150-200 gram of dark chocolate. You heat the cream and add that to the chopped chocolate. Let it sit for a while and then stir through. You should have a smooth mixture.
FAQ Chocolate Cake with Cardamom
Yes. If you don’t have whole pods, use 0,5-1,5 teaspoons ground cardamom. The flavor is slightly less vibrant, but it works perfectly for this cake.
Insert a toothpick or skewer in the center. If it comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs (but no wet batter), the cake is done. Ovens vary, so start checking at around 45 minutes.
Absolutely. Almonds, pecans, or walnuts work well. If you prefer a nut-free version, simply leave them out.
Yes. The cake stays moist for 2-3 days when wrapped well and stored at room temperature. You can also bake it a day ahead and add the ganache right before serving.
You can freeze the cake without the ganache. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature and decorate afterward.
Let it cool for a few minutes longer. Ganache thickens as it cools. If it’s still thin, add a few extra pieces of chocolate and melt again gently.
Yes, but the result will be much sweeter. Reduce the sugar in the cake by 25-30 grams if you want a more balanced flavor.
More chocolate recipes
Peanut butter panna cotta with chocolate sauce
Chocolate Cardamom Cake
Ingredients
- 9 cardamom pods
- 225 grams butter at roomtemperature
- 225 grams light brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 300 grams self rising flour
- 4 tbsp cacao powder
- 125 grams hazelnuts roughly chopped
- 150 ml whole milk
- 100 grams dark chocolate chopped
For the chocolate ganache
- 150 grams dark chocolate broken into pieces
- 50 grams butter at roomtemperature
- 25 grams pistachio nuts chopped roughly
Equipment
- Baking tin/ springform pan/ 20 cm 8 inch
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 180˚ C (350˚F). Bruise the cardamom pods and remove the black seeds. Throw away the green shells and ground the black seeds in the pestle and mortar.9 cardamom pods
- Mix the butter with the sugar and mix till you have a lightly colored creamy mixture. Whisk the eggs together in a separate bowl and add them to your butter mixture in three stages. Mix in between each egg until fully incorporated.225 grams butter, 225 grams light brown sugar, 3 eggs
- Put the flour and cocoa powder through a sieve above your bowl. Add the hazelnuts directly and mix everything together with a wooden spoon gently. Stir in the milk together with the ground cardamom seeds and the chopped chocolate pieces.300 grams self rising flour, 4 tbsp cacao powder, 125 grams hazelnuts, 150 ml whole milk, 100 grams dark chocolate
- Grease your cake tin well and dust with flour. Tap out the excess flour and put the batter into the form. Put it into the oven for 50 mins. Take the cake out of the oven (after checking if it is fully cooked) and leave to cool in the tin for about 15 mins. Then turn out onto a cooling rack and leave to cool for a further 45 mins before starting your decorating.
- For the sauce you can put the chocolate and the butter together in a bowl and melt it in a double boiler above softly boiling water. Make sure the bottom of your bowl does not touch the water. Once it is all melted, leave to let it cool a little bit. You want it to firm up a tiny bit before you pour it over the cake. Finish with the chopped pistachio's.150 grams dark chocolate, 50 grams butter, 25 grams pistachio nuts
Nutrition Information per portion:
Disclaimer:
The nutritional values above are calculated per portion. The details are based on standard nutritional tables and do not constitute a professional nutritional advice.
