This is a delicious twist on your classic vanilla cake. Cardamom has a heavenly scent that will make your kitchen smell wonderful!
My two absolute favorite spices are cardamom and vanilla. How it has taken me this long to combine them into a cake is beyond me.
This cardamom vanilla bean layer cake has so much vanilla in it you can see the seeds speckled throughout both the cake and the Italian meringue buttercream frosting.Â
In August I shared a recipe for chocolate espresso layer cake and discussed how stressful the entire process was to me.
There are so many moments that can go wrong. But when it comes out perfectly there is nothing quite as satisfying as creating a beautiful layer cake.
That experience inspired me to do this more often. It’s a skill that when practiced becomes less stressful and more fun. This time I actually found it relaxing, believe it or not.
I think this cake turned out both beautiful and odd looking. The cardamom gives the cake a slight green hue and as you can see from the photos, the vanilla seeds are all over the place.
But these two spices complement each other so perfectly that I have a feeling I’ll be making this cake again and again.
Cardamom Vanilla Bean Layer Cake
Ingredients
Cardamom Vanilla Bean Layer Cake:
- 10 1/2 ounces all-purpose flour
- 3 ounces cornstarch (9 tablespoons)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cardamom
- 4 vanilla beans
- 1 1/2 cups half-and-half, or 50% cream + 50% whole milk
- 1/4 cup brandy (see notes)
- 2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
- 9 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
- 21 ounces granulated sugar
- 6 large eggs, room temperature
Cardamom Vanilla Bean Buttercream:
- 12 ounces granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon corn syrup
- 5 large egg whites
- 16 ounces unsalted butter, cubed and at room temperature
- 2 vanilla beans
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
Instructions
Prepare the cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place an oven rack in the middle position. Lightly spray the bottom of 3 8-inch cake pans with baking spray and then cover them with parchment rounds. Set aside.
- Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt and cardamom in a medium bowl.
- Slice 4 vanilla beans in half lengthwise with a small paring knife. Use the dull side of the knife to scrape out all of the seeds. Add the seeds to the dry ingredients and separate any large clumps.
- In a separate small bowl, combine the half and half, brandy and vanilla extract.
- In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar together on medium high speed for several minutes. On low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, allowing each egg to incorporate before adding the next. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the mixer still on low speed, quickly alternate between adding the dry and liquid ingredients (ending with the dry) until just combined. Scrape down the sides well, making sure to reach the bottom of the bowl.
- Distribute the batter evenly between the 3 prepared cake pans, using a spatula to even out the tops.
- Bake until the a toothpick comes out of the center of each cake clean, approximately 30-35 minutes. Allow the cakes to cool completely in the pan before removing.
Prepare the frosting:
- Add sugar, water and corn syrup to a medium sized sauce pot. Cover and turn the heat to high. Once the liquid begins to simmer and steam has developed, remove the cover (this helps prevent crystallization). Using a candy thermometer, cook the sugar to the soft boil stage, 235-240 degrees F.
- While the sugar is cooking, whisk the egg whites on high in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment until a soft peak has formed.
- Turn the mixer speed down to medium low and very slowly pour the syrup down the side of the bowl into the egg whites. Don’t pour the hot syrup directly into the meringue.
- Once the syrup is completely incorporated, turn the speed to high and allow the meringue to continue to form a stiff peak while cooling down. Mix on high until the meringue has reached room temperature. To speed up this 15-20 minute process, ice packs can be placed around the bowl.
- While the meringue is cooling, scrape the seeds from the remaining two vanilla beans.
- Once the meringue is at room temperature, slowly begin incorporating the soft butter on medium speed. Once all of the butter has been incorporated, turn the mixer speed up to high and very slowly add the vanilla bean seeds, vanilla extract and cardamom.
Assemble the layers:
- Place the first layer of cake on a revolving cake stand and remove the parchment paper. Placing a cardboard round below the cake is optional but will make transporting the cake easier after it is assembled.
- Spread approximately one cup of buttercream on the cake and spread it around evenly with an offset spatula. Add more buttercream as needed to reached the desired thickness. Repeat with the second and third layer (don't forget to remove the parchment each time). Use an offset spatula to apply a thin layer of frosting to the side and top of the cake. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to set this first layer of buttercream. Cover the entire cake with a final layer of frosting.
- Cake is best when served at room temperature.
Notes
Please read my full post for additional recipe notes, tips, and serving suggestions!
Nutrition
Recipe Troubleshooting
For immediate help troubleshooting a recipe, please email me using the form on my contact page. I’ll try to respond to urgent questions as quickly as possible! For all general questions, please leave a comment here :)
Kathryn says
This is a total beauty of a cake.
Zainab @ Blahnik Baker says
Absolute beauty!! And I just love the flavors.
Belinda @themoonblushbaker says
Wow! i love this combo. the flavours definitely are stand out!
Your photo make this cake pop!
Summer says
I need to pick my chin on the floor. Seriously sounds amazing and looks…. OMG I need this in my life.
Jackie {The Beerones} says
Your cakes always look so incredibly perfect. I have to try one of your recipes next time, and the frosting to cake ratio looks perfect on yours.
Carla says
This cake looks absolutely perfect. I need to practice cutting cakes. Cardamom is a great spice, although I don’t use it as much as you. I’m putting this cake on my to bake list.
Sarah | The Sugar Hit says
This really is gorgeous, and I love that flavour profile of cardamom and vanilla. So simple, just perfect.
Amy @ Elephant Eats says
I just love anything speckled with vanilla beans! It looks pretty and you know the taste must be amazing :) And I LOVE cardamom. I think it’s my favorite spice…it just smells so so good. So basically, I need this cake.
Maria | Pink Patisserie says
Never, never can I ever, ever have too much cardamom. This is a gorgeous cake!
Jennie @themessybakerblog says
Jen, this cake is gorgeous. I love the flavor combo. Pinned.
Hormoz says
Hi. I was wondering whether one can make this cake without the brandy. I’m asking since i live in a country where there is no brandy available. Would the cake be as good without it?
Jennifer Farley says
You could try swapping out the brandy for more vanilla extract or half and half.
julie says
Hello!
I’m in quite a savory meets sweet phase (I’ve been doing lots of baking with rosemary or balsamic). This? This has me excited.
I’m not sure you’ll see this…and I’m not sure you’ll know. But here goes.
I only have 9″ cake pans. I even went to Target tonight to get 8″…none. I’m a bit stunned really and of course am baking this cake tomorrow. I have a request out to our neighbors but have thus far only secured 1 8″ pan.
Would you recommend:
1. increasing the batter by about 1/4 to account for the increase in volume for 3 9″ layers
2. making just 2 layers so they have the requisite thickness
3. making 3 layers and checking
4. some other clever solution I can’t even conceive of.
Thank you, thank you!
Next I’m definitely attacking those Nutella stuffed cookies. Holy zoinks.
Jennifer Farley says
Hey there. It will still work in 9 inch pans, the cake just won’t be as thick. It might need a couple minutes less cooking time so keep an eye on it.
julie says
You are amazing for that fast reply!
So you think 3 9″ layers, not 2 9″ layers?
And for future reference….do you think this would work well as cupcakes?
You’re done with me, promise!
Jennifer Farley says
Yes, 3 9-inch layers. And yes to cupcakes!
Cynthea LaCroix says
Well!..This looked so beautiful that I thought I would try to make this for Thanksgiving…Hmmmmm it did not come out looking like yours, but the flavors were wonderful. Oh ..to have the touch of making a beautiful looking cake hahahahaha. At least I tried :)
Thank you, this was very very tasty.
Jennifer Farley says
Thank you so much! And Happy Thanksgiving! Were there any specific issues you ran into in terms of making it look like mine that I can help you troubleshoot?
Cynthea LaCroix says
Yes, The Butter cream frosting…it seemed to curdle?..so let bowl cool more in cold water and seemed to help, but when icing the cake it was really slimy..have put it in fridge now that it is on the cake.
I couldn’t get it to look smooth like yours..but thats ok :)
Jennifer Farley says
Ahh… Italian meringue buttercream can be such a finicky thing. I’ve had issues with it curdling before; it normally happens when I add the butter while it’s not quite at room temperature. Cold butter will definitely break in buttercream. If that happens you can take a small amount of the buttercream (maybe 1/4 cup) and microwave it very briefly so it just starts to melt but isn’t completely liquified. Adding that back to the buttercream will often fix the issue. This article has some other suggestions.
Cynthea LaCroix says
Oh..plus there wasnt enough cream frosting for the 3 layers so I made it into a 2 layer cake.
Kept the 3rd for myself to snack on lol