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Warm spices, tender apples, and a luxurious pistachio cream make this apple cardamom cake with pistachio cream an absolute showstopper.
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What makes this recipe special
Once it's fall, everyone starts bringing out the pumpkin spice, caramel, and apple desserts, and I love it. I already have plenty of fall desserts, including caramel apple tiramisu, apple dulce de leche custard Danish, and caramel spiced apple cider. Today, I'm adding another one to the list: apple cardamom cake with pistachio cream.
I wanted a moist cake similar to a coffee cake but loaded with apples. Pair it with a warm spice like cardamom and top it with a cinnamon sugar streusel, and it's pure heaven. Unless you take the extra step and make the pistachio cream as well, then it's game over. Ready to make another apple dessert?
Ingredients
- Vegetable oil: Helps create a moist, tender crumb and helps the cake stay fresh longer than butter-based cakes would.
- Greek yogurt: Adds moisture, tang, and richness to the cake. You can substitute it with sour cream, if desired.
- Cardamom: Adds a warm, slightly floral flavor to the cake itself and the streusel.
- Apples: Adds moisture, natural sweetness, and texture to the cake. Use apples that bake well, including Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Braeburn, and Pink Lady.
- Pistachios: Used in the finishing cream to create a luxurious sauce.
Substitutions and variations
- Fruit: Try this cake with pears instead of apples.
- Toppings: If you're not a fan of pistachio cream, you can serve the cake by itself or top it with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Recipe
Apple Cardamom Cake with Pistachio Cream
Ingredients
Apple cardamom cake
- 1 cup vegetable oil (250 ml)
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup Greek yogurt, plain (113 grams)
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (260 grams)
- 1 cup granulated sugar (200 grams)
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cardamom
- 4 cups baking apples, peeled, cored, chopped (450 grams)
Cinnamon sugar streusel
- ¼ cup granulated sugar (50 grams)
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon cardamom
- 1 tablespoon butter, melted (14 grams)
Pistachio cream
- 1 cup pistachios, roasted (130 grams)
- ¾ cup powdered sugar (90 grams)
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 cup heavy cream (250 ml)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9-inch cake pan.
- Make the apple cardamom cake batter. Whisk together vegetable oil with eggs, Greek yogurt, and vanilla until smooth.
- In a separate bowl, combine the flour with sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cardamom. Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture, stirring just until combined. Fold in the chopped apples and pour the batter into the prepared cake pan.
- Make the cinnamon-sugar streusel. Combine sugar with cinnamon, cardamom, and melted butter until well combined. Sprinkle the streusel on top of the cake.
- Bake the cake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.
- Meanwhile, make the pistachio cream. In a food processor, grind the pistachios until smooth, about 5 minutes. Add the powdered sugar and process until combined. Add water and process and until smooth and thick, another 1-2 minutes. Add heavy cream and process until creamy and thick, about 5 minutes. Chill the pistachio cream until ready to serve. The cream will thicken as it chills.
Notes
Step-by-step instructions
Step 1: Make cake batter
If you have ever made a coffee cake, this apple cardamom cake will be a cinch for you to make. Heck, even if you haven't, this cake will still be easy to tackle.
It's really just the basic step of mixing your wet ingredients, combining your dry ingredients, and then stirring everything together.
For the apples, I chose Granny Smith apples, but you can also use Braeburn, Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, or a combination of apples. Granny Smith apples are more tart than other varieties, so you can use a mixture of apples to balance the tartness.
Gently stir the apples into the batter and pour it into the prepared cake pan. It's going to look like too many apples, but trust the process. This is, after all, an apple cake, so we want a sufficient amount of fruit in the batter.
Step 2: Bake
Make the cinnamon sugar cardamom streusel and sprinkle it evenly over the cake.
This streusel is a bit different from other types in that there's no flour. It's more of a sugar topping than a streusel, and let me tell you, it's a wonderful way to infuse more flavor. Since the cake itself isn't very sweet, this sugar topping is a must.
Plus, when does it ever hurt to add a little extra cinnamon sugar goodness on anything, am I right?
Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. As tempting as it is, let the cake cool before digging right in.
You can serve this cake warm, but I would advise against cutting into it straight out of the oven.
Step 3: Prepare pistachio cream
Now we can stop there and serve the cake as is, but we're going to go one step further and make pistachio cream. I am a diehard fan of pistachios, so it was a no-brainer that I would make this accompanying cream.
To make the pistachio cream, process shelled roasted unsalted pistachios until the nuts are finely ground.
Then, add the powdered sugar and continue to process the nuts. Add a touch of water to the mixture and puree. At this point, you should have a paste.
To turn it into a cream, add heavy cream and continue to puree until the mixture is thickened and creamy. It should coat the back of a spoon.
Transfer the cream to the refridgerator and let it set up, thickening more as it cools.
You can also make the pistachio cream a couple of days in advance. I made a double batch and ended up smearing this on scones, muffins, cookies, pretty much any baked good I can find.
Once the apple cardamom cake is cool enough to slice, dish it up and serve it with a side of pistachio cream.
I know some people are skeptical about adding cardamom to desserts, but it works wonders in this cake. It adds a lovely spice, making it different than any other average cake. Meanwhile, the pistachio cream makes it just a wee bit fancy. Delicious all around, if I do say so myself!
Make-ahead and storage
- Make-ahead: You can make the pistachio cream up to 2 days in advance and refrigerate it in an airtight container. Let it sit at room temperature before serving.
- Store: Keep the cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerate for up to 5 days. Store the pistachio cream separately in the fridge.
Frequently asked questions
Cardamom is what makes this cake unique, but if you don't have it or dislike it, you can omit it. The cake will still be delicious with just cinnamon, though you'll lose that warm, slightly floral note.
You can use a 10-inch cake pan, but the cake won't be as tall. Adjust the baking time accordingly. I don't recommend using an 8-inch cake pan because the batter will overflow.
Yes, wrap the cooled cake tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature before serving.
More fall dessert recipes
Looking for more fall dessert ideas? Try these:
Marsha K says
The ingredient list IE: sugar calls for 1 cup, yet in your directions so say add 2 cups of sugar?? I'm going to go with my gut and only add 1 cup for the recipe!! Might want to fix this please?
Christine Ma says
So sorry about that, you're right, it should be 1 cup. I just adjusted it!
Jane says
What a beautiful dessert! The apple cake was incredibly soft and loaded with apples and the pistachio cream was rich and made the dessert very special.
Christine Ma says
That's so great to hear, glad you enjoyed it!