I am so obsessed with citrus right now. I swear, I am eating it in one form or another every single day right now. It only seemed natural to incorporate it into my baked goods as well. I love an orange / cardamom combo, so that is where the idea for this cake was born. So, let me present this lovely Blood Orange Cardamom cake with cream cheese icing. Y’all…. this is so good.
Start with the zest of course. Any baked good you are making with a citrus flavor has got to have zest in it. The flavor will not shine through without it. I love to use my microplane for this as it makes easy work of an otherwise tedious job. Just make sure you only get the zest and not the pith (the white part right under the zest). It is really bitter and not a good flavor for this cake at all.
Next up is the juice. This is where out beautiful color is going to come from.
For this cake, another partial wheat cake. I used the Farm Fresh Wheat from Washington I have been loving. I generally grind it as I use it with my Nutrimill, but had a little leftover from the other day.
Cardamom, cardamom, cardamom. It is just so good in this cake.
Now, remember prepping your bundt pan is really important! Take the time and grease it well then coat in flour. This will save you so much stress on the backside.
I love to use oil in my baked goods too. Some people turn their nose up at it, but I just love the texture it gives,
Another secret I use in my baked goods, especially my whole grain baked goods is Greek Yogurt. It is high in protein, totally healthy and also helps soften the crumb.
You can use granulated sugar for this, but I was really craving the taste of brown sugar with the orange and cardamom.
Because you are using oil instead of butter, it is really simple to mix with a spatula instead of having to use a stand or hand mixer.
Pour the batter into your prepared pan.
Once it is done, prepare to invert. Place a cooling rack on top.
Carefully flip over…Then comes the moment of truth.
Yassss!!
I am honestly pretty obsessed with this pan. The swirl is just so pretty.
I mean come on!! Just look at this cake!
Next up is the cream cheese icing. I know a lot of people make glazes for bundt cakes with just powdered sugar, the juice and maybe vanilla. I hate the flavor of those though. To me is almost tastes like you are eating just powdered sugar.
Mix well. Make sure and add plenty of blood orange juice. Not only for the beautiful color, but also for a nice thin consistency.
It should fall easily.
Cover the whole cake with this. Trust me, the flavor is so good you are going to want as much of it as you can get!!
I topped mine with some quartered blood orange pieces and pearl sugar.
Remember the spiced pear cake I had to get out of my house? Yep, this one was the same way. I had to get it out before I ate it all myself!
Look at the texture on this thing!! It was perfect. The flavor was amazing. You are going to want to try this!!
Maybe you might want something a little healthier than this blood orange and cardamom cake, maybe…if so, how about this blood orange and golden beet salad?
Blood Orange and Cardamom Cake
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour If you prefer to use 100% whole wheat, it will be perfect for this cake.
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons cardamom
- 2 tablespoons blood orange zest You can always use naval oranges for this if you prefer!
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2/3 cup oil of choice I used canola oil, but this is up to you.
- 1/2 cup almond milk
- 1/2 cup blood orange juice or juice from naval oranges
- 1/4 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
Blood Orange Cream Cheese Glaze
- 2 ounces lowfat cream cheese if you prefer regular or even fat free, both work here!
- 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 2/3-1 cup blood orange juice this variable will depend on how thin or thick you want your glaze to be.
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.Prep your bundt pan. I do this by brushing the inside of the pan really well with melted butter. Then add about 1 tablespoon of flour, swirl the pan to lightly coat the inside entirely. Tap out excess flour.Next, mix your flours, baking powder, salt and cardamom in a small bowl. Set aside.In another, larger bowl, combine oil and sugar. Mix. Add in eggs and vanilla. Mix until combined. Next is the zest and Greek yogurt. Again, mix only to combine. Dry ingredients are next. Add them in and mix to combine. The batter will be thick. Last is the almond milk and blood orange juice. Mix again to combine. Pour into pan. Place in heated oven. Bake for 40-50 minutes. You will want that toothpick inserted to come out with just a little stuff on it. I feel the top of my bundt to gauge. If it is just SLIGHTLY underdone in the very center, that is the perfect time to pull it out. It will continue to bake even after you pull it from the oven, so remember to pull it out before it is done all the way. This is particularly important when you baking with whole grains. They absorb more moisture, so be mindful of over baking.