Orange & Cardamom Loaf Cake
- Rahul Mandal
- Sep 19
- 2 min read
I love the flavour combination of zingy, zesty orange and sweet, aromatic cardamom and this rich, satisfying cake showcases them perfectly. Top tip – if you want your cake to achieve the characteristic crack on top, pipe a line of butter along the top before baking.
Ingredients
For the loaf
110g caster sugar
Zest of 2 oranges
110g soft salted butter (you can use unsalted butter, but add a big pinch of salt) (plus 10g extra to pipe a line)
2 medium free-range eggs
110g self-raising flour
1 to 1.5tsp of ground cardamom
1tbsp of cream/whole milk
For syrup
40g caster sugar
Juice of 2 oranges
1tsp of cardamom pod, crushed
Serves: 8 to 10
Preparation time: 10-15 mins
Baking time: 50 to 55 mins
Method
Preheat the oven to 160oC (Fan). Line a 1lb loaf tin with butter and baking paper.
Rub the orange zest with sugar, so well that the sugar turns orange in colour.
Cream butter with sugar – you can just use a ballon whisk. You wouldn't need a electric whisk for it. Then add eggs and whisk together. Finally add ground cardamom and self-raising flour and whisk well. If the batter is too thick, add a tbsp of cream or milk to loosen it slightly. You can also add a little vanilla if you wish, but it is optional.
Spoon the batter into the tin and pipe a line of butter on top. This will encourage to have the characteristic crack.
Bake in the preheated oven for 45 to 50mins. Once baked, take the loaf out of the oven and let it cool a little.
To make the syrup, warm all the syrup ingredients and bring them to a boil. Take it off the heat and let it cool slightly. Then, pour the warm syrup all over the warm sponge. Let it soak for few hours for best results.