Almond Cardamom Cake is a blend that offers rich notes of almonds, warm spice from the cardamom, and subtle notes of cinnamon. It is made with rooibos, making it a caffeine-free tea! That makes this blend perfect for any time of day, whenever you need it. I love a little morning or afternoon snack break with a sip of tea and a treat. Why not pair your tea with an almond cardamom cake-infused cake? The flavors of both cardamom and almonds pair beautifully with apricots.

Featured Ingredients

Almond Cardamom Cake

Rich and warm. Perfect on its own, but just as amazing in a baked good. We'll use it to make syrup and glaze in this recipe.

Apricots

Apricots are sweet and just a little sour. I love to bake with them because their flavor helps to balance out a dessert. It shouldn't just be sweet!

When choosing your fruit at the store or market look for apricots deep in color, and that give a little when you press on them but aren't too soft. You can substitute for canned apricots if they're out of season. When following the recipe directions, skip steps 2-3 if you are using canned.

Egg Yolks

Upside-down cakes remind me of cozy days at home. This is a dessert that you share with loved ones and that makes me want to lean into the decadence of it. For a soft cake with a tighter crumb, you can easily replace whole eggs with just egg yolks. The extra fat keeps this cake moist and rich in color.

The Spices

Nothing keeps you warm all year round like cinnamon and cardamom. Just a dash of both in the cake batter will be just enough to fill your home with wonderful smells as it bakes without leaning too far into spice cake territory. This recipe has the perfect amount.

Apricot Upside-Down Cake infused with Almond Cardamom Tea

Yield: 12 slices
Time: 1.5 hours

Ingredients

Topping
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
5 fresh apricots
1 cup white sugar
2 cups water
1 tablespoon Almond Cardamom Cake

Cake Batter
5 egg yolks
1 cup milk
1 cup neutral oil
1 cup white sugar
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cardamom

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon brewed tea

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F

2. To make the topping: Bring water, white sugar, and the tea (fitted into a tea bag, or tea infuser) and bring to a simmer. While the syrup is coming to temperature, peel and cut the apricots. I put 4 cuts in mine all going across the width of the fruit, creating 4 round slices that will lay flat in the pan.

3. Once your syrup comes to a simmer, remove the tea bag and add your apricot slices. Let them cook for a few minutes just to soften. Strain and set aside

4. Spray your baking pan (I used a 9-inch round) with a bit of spray oil, and then in the bottom, spread melted butter out evenly. Then sprinkle the brown sugar around over the butter to make an even coat, but don't mix it into the butter.

5. When your apricots are cool enough to handle arrange them flat down in the baking pan over the brown sugar. Press them in a little so they stay in place. Once arranged, set aside.

6. To make the batter: In a large bowl whisk egg yolk, milk, and oil together until homogenous. Add the white sugar and salt and mix again.

7. In a separate bowl sift flour, baking powder, and spices to remove any lumps. Add sifted dry ingredients into the wet and mix until no dry flour remains.

8. Gently spoon batter over the apricots, and spread out evenly with a spatula. You want to be gentle so as to not disturb the arranged fruit.

9. Bake for 30 minutes or until the cake springs back when you poke the top.

10. While the cake bakes, make the glaze. Brew your tea, at the lowest temperature on your kettle. Let cool slightly, or add an ice cube to speed up the process. Then simply pour into a small bowl of powdered sugar and mix with a fork until no lumps remain, add more tea if needed.

11. When the cake comes out of the oven, you can run a knife along the edges to loosen it, then very carefully invert the cake onto a plate. Leave the pan on there for a few minutes to ensure all the fruit and syrup stay in place.

12. Give your cake a minute to rest then cut a slice and serve with a drizzle of glaze!

Tea Chef

Check out this month's TeaChef recipe competition! Head over there to submit your own creations to potentially win a $50 gift card to Adagio!