Coffee & Cardamom Loaf

 

Coffee & Cardamom Loaf.  I really love teabreads, loafs.  By that I mean a sweet quick bread that is meant to be served with a hot cuppa, not a bread made with tea.

 

One of my favourite cooking magazines over here in the UK is the Good Food Cooking magazine.  I used to have a subscription, but when I lost my job it wasn't something I could afford and so now I only pick it up when there are recipes in it that I am particularly interested in.  

 

The latest issue had a great recipe in it for a basic loaf cake right on the very last page, with some variations on it.  I thought this variation sounded delicious! 

 

I just love coffee flavoured cakes and cookies.  One of my favourite Canadian Candy Bars is the Coffee Crisp and I always call dibs on the coffee flavoured chocolates in the Roses Chocolate Box!  

 

(They are in the green wrapper!)  I have not had a coffee crisp in a very long time now.  Sigh . . . 

 

Back to the cake.  This is a very simple all in one cake, meaning you just pile all of the ingredients into the bowl and beat them together, then scrape the batter into the prepared loaf tin and bake.  Easy peasy. 

I love all in one cakes. Especially when they combine flavours such as this one has. Coffee?  Love that flavour.  Cardamom?  Love that flavour also.  Coffee & Cardamom together?  This HAS to be great!

 

I had some instant vanilla flavoured coffee left from my last Degustabox and that is what I used for the coffee needed for the cake and the frosting.   Some good!  

 

I didn't have any plain yogurt and so I used buttermilk with excellent results! Handy tip here, if you have a recipe calling for yogurt, or buttermilk or sour cream, you can usually interchange them, or make your own sour milk as well.

 

It makes a cake which is just the right size.  Loaf size.  Cutting into 8 thick slices.   Just perfect for us.

 

The coffee icing gets spread onto the cooled loaf and I created a white cardamom flavoured drizzle to decorate it with. It looked very nice when it was all done. 

The two together looked really pretty I thought. Tasted nice too!  This is a really fabulous cake. I highly recommend!

 

*Coffee & Cardamom Loaf*

Makes one 2 lb loaf cake

Printable Recipe 

This smells heavenly when it is baking.  An all in one mix, classic loaf cake with modern flavours. 

For the cake:

175g unsalted butter (3/4 cup)

150g sugar (3/4 cup)

2 large free range eggs

225g of self-rising flour (1 3/4 cup)

50g plain buttermilk (3 1/2 TBS)

50ml strong coffee (3 1/2 TBS)

1 tsp ground cardamom

pinch salt

To ice:

100g icing sugar, sifted (generous 3/4 cup)

25ml strong coffee (1 3/4 TBS)

Also: (optional)

30g icing sugar (scant 1/4 cup)

pinch ground cardamom

few drops warm water

 

Preheat the oven to 190*C/375*F/ gas mark 5.  Butter and base line a 2 pound loaf tin.  Set aside.

Place the butter, sugar, eggs, flour, buttermilk, coffee, cardamom and salt into a bowl. Beat with an electric whisk until smooth. Spread into the prepared baking tin. Bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before tipping out onto a rack to finish cooling completely.

 

To make the Coffee Icing, whisk the ingredients together until smooth. Spoon over the cooled cake. Allow to set before proceeding with the optional cardamom drizzle. To make the cardamom drizzle, whisk those ingredients together until smooth, only adding enough water to give you a smooth drizzle. Flick it over the top of the set coffee icing. Allow to set before cutting the loaf into thick slices to serve.You should get 8 servings.

We both really loved this cake.  It went down well with a hot drink and had a lovely coffee flavour.  I think next time I will increase the cardamom in the batter slightly.  The original recipe called for the seeds from four pods ground, and I erred on the side of caution by adding what I did of the ground.  next time I might add a bit more.  I hope you will bake it.  I am sure you will love it!  Bon Appetit! 

 

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