Rhubarb, Orange and Cardamom Cake

Name: Rhubarb, Orange and Cardamom Cake
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 75 min
Ingredients: 3 cups rhubarb (diced into ½ inch pieces); 1 cup sugar (plus 1 tablespoon for topping ); grated zest of 1 orange, plus ½ cup fresh orange juice; 1 cup butter (melted room temperature); 3 large eggs; 1 cup all purpose flour (4¼ ounces or 120 grams); 1 cup blanched almond flour (95 grams); 1 teaspoon baking powder; ½ teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon ground cardamom; 2 tablespoons sliced almonds

Published: Jun 8, 2021 · Modified: Jul 23, 2024 by Archana Mundhe · This post may contain affiliate links · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases · 35 Comments

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Rhubarb Orange and Cardamom Cake - I couldn’t wait to share this brand new recipe on the blog!! A golden almond cake bursting with tart juicy rhubarb, sweet orange, and earthy citrusy cardamom. It’s as vibrant and alluring as a summer sunset.

rhubarb cake with powdered sugar and candied orange slices

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This recipe uses just a few ingredients and the simple two-bowl mixing method—-wet and dry ingredients. So don’t feel intimidated the next time you see those gorgeous fushia stalks at the farmer’s market. Grab them and make this cake!

Baking in Season

We see rhubarb pop up in baked goods everywhere, especially pies and tarts, when it finally bursts onto the scene in spring. Strawberry-Rhubarb is a common and very delicious combination. But I knew I wanted to explore different flavors…..and I wanted to make a cake!

rhubarb almond cake with powdered sugar and candied orange slices

Rhubarb is quite tart and needs to be sweetened when cooking—which produces the uniquely delicious sweet-tart flavor that makes this such a sought-after seasonal treat. It also has a crisp firm texture so softening with the sugar first for 30 min releases the juices and works really well in this preparation.

Texture

The almond flour, butter, and orange juice produce an incredibly moist stick-to-the-fork crumb. As it cooks the rhubarb softens into a preserve-like texture and dots the cake with crimson bits of sweet-tart bliss!

Flavors

I love the way the sweet-tart orange juice and zest complement the rhubarb. Cardamom has definite citrus notes which play up the brightness of the cake. But it also has a floral and earthy taste that rounds out the flavors and adds a cozy warm feeling similar to cinnamon.

Ingredient Spotlight

Rhubarb - Crimson fuchsia fading to spring green stalks. Technically a vegetable but always grouped with fruits. ONLY the stalks are edible, discard the leaves, as they are not edible. Rhubarb is quite bitter so it works perfectly in sweetened baked goods. In season Spring to Summer.
Almond Flour - GF, nutty flavor, produces moist dense baked goods.
Ground Cardamom - complex Indian Spice, earthy, floral, herbal, citrusy. An incredible addition to baked goods and desserts. Try out my quick and easy white chocolate bark with cardamom

ingredients for rhubarb, orange and cardamom cake

Tips

Remember to zest the orange before cutting in half. Then squeeze out the juice
Keep the almond flour in the refrigerator for freshness as nut flours have oils that can become rancid. You can also freeze it
It can take more or less time to bake this cake depending on your oven. Insert a wooden skewer in the center and make sure that it comes out clean
If the top starts to brown before the cake is fully cooked, cover it with aluminum foil
Since Rhubarb is available in late spring and summer, I often dice and freeze it in zip-lock bags so I have them for the rest of the year!

How to Make Rhubarb Cake

Here is the step by step recipe with photos. Printable recipe card along with the ingredient measurements are at the end of this post:

Grease the bottom and sides of a 9" spring form cake pan. You can also cut a parchment paper and place it on the bottom and grease the sides. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Rinse and dry the rhubarb. Cut into small ½-inch cubes. Add rhubarb to a bowl and sprinkle sugar on it. Lightly mix and allow the sugar to dissolve 20 to 30 mins

photos one through four showing how to prep rhubarb for the cake

Zest the orange. Cut into half and then squeeze out the juice.
Melt butter in a large bowl by microwaving it for 30 to 40 seconds. Remember not to make it too hot. Add orange zest, orange juice and sugar. Whisk together until well blended. Add eggs.

photos five through eight - zest and juice orange and mixing wet ingredients for the cake

Mix the butter and eggs.
In another bowl add all purpose flour, almond flour, baking powder, cardamom powder and salt. Mix it well.
Add the dry ingredients to the egg mixture and mix well.

photos nine through twelve showing how to make cake batter

Add the rhubarb mixture and gently fold it in the batter.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle the sliced almonds and sugar on top. Bake at 350 F for 40 mins to an hour or until a wooden skewer in the center comes out clean. If the top starts to brown before the cake is fully cooked, cover it with aluminum foil for the last 10 minutes or so.

photos thirteen through sixteen showing rhubarb cake batter ready to be baked

Allow it to cool on a cooling rack for 20 minutes before opening the spring form pan. Cool completely and cut into slices.

photos thirteen and fourteen showing baked rhubarb orange cardamom cake

How to Serve

This is a perfect cake to serve at parties, get-togethers, and special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, Mother's Day, or Father's Day! Although the cake tastes delicious as is here are a few ways to fancy it up:

Dust the cake with powdered sugar
Enjoy with a scoop of vanilla ice cream
Add some sweetened whipped cream on top

Storing

Rhubarb cake has nice crisp edges and pillowy soft center. Keep it at room temperature for a day. Any leftovers can be refrigerated for up to a week. You can also freeze individual slices.

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Comments

4.67 from 24 votes (14 ratings without comment)