Orange Walnut Bundt Cake

I lied. I said I wasn’t going to post anything new until January.

But it’s December 31, so I almost made it. I just had to post this cake recipe because it’s the PERFECT dessert for New Year’s Day.

Christmas week is drawing to an end, and, even if you’re not one who celebrates that particular holiday, I’m sure it’s been hard to escape the tons of cookies, cakes, and other sugary treats popping up at parties, friends’ homes, and even offices.

We’re all about ready for a sugar detox, am I right??

But…it’s New Year’s Eve. Which means people are still getting together and celebrating. Which means that despite however sugar-overloaded people are right now, they’re still going to expect some kind of sweet treat if you’re throwing a party.

Enter this Orange Walnut Bundt Cake. It’s a healthy cake.

Kinda. Sorta.

Okay, it’s still cake, but it’s a cake that uses whole wheat flour and Greek yogurt and fresh fruit juice, and it does NOT use ANY butter. *gasp* Which means that you can absolutely feel less guilt about firing up your oven and serving yet another dessert to your family and friends.

As someone who loves baked goods, I often find that I have to limit myself when it comes to my indulgences, or else I’ll weigh what I did back in college. (No one wants that. Especially me.)

Rather than completely cut out everything that tastes good in order to stay thin, I’ve learned to occasionally swap in some healthier ingredients to my usual recipes so I can still enjoy treats without overindulging.

This Orange Walnut Bundt Cake is very different from most desserts I make, most notably because it uses whole wheat flour. This is an unusual ingredient for cakes, which typically call for lighter, all-purpose flour.

I actually loved the earthy, gritty texture the whole wheat flour brought to the cake, and I thought it blended well with the cinnamon and cardamom infusing the crumb. This recipe also swaps out the traditional, more decadent ingredients like butter and sour cream for the healthier olive oil and Greek yogurt, and the result is a surprisingly flavorful and light cake.

The ribbon of filling is undoubtedly my favorite part – I was damn near swooning with olfactory overload as I whirred together the dates, vanilla, cinnamon, and fresh orange juice. I want to learn how to make candles with that scent so I can have it permeate my house all year long. The date filling brings a real sweetness to the cake, along with the sunshine burst of freshness from the orange juice that brightens up the batter.

Take note: You want to dollop the filling evenly around the Bundt pan so it’s easier to spread over the batter; every slice of cake should have some filling, so be sure to add a little extra to any bare spots. Same goes with the layer of chopped walnuts and the remaining cake batter that goes on top. The batter is light and spongey, so it spreads very easily and should be easy to work with.

This cake comes together fairly quickly, which is another reason I like this recipe. While you need a food processor for the filling, you can mix the rest of the ingredients by hand. Anytime I don’t have to haul out my massive Kitchen-Aid stand mixer is GOOD.

And, since there is no butter in this recipe, the only ingredient you need to bring to room temperature before you start baking is the eggs; that can be done quickly by placing them in a bowl of warm water for about five minutes.

I was originally suspicious of the yogurt glaze when I first discovered this recipe in Cooking Light, but I ended up loving the tangy sweetness on the spiced cake. Also, it looks SO pretty drizzled on the top of the Bundt. You should serve this cake at room temperature, but it should be stored in the fridge because of the yogurt in the glaze.

You can follow the directions on the original Cooking Light recipe, but I’ve written my own set below that I think are particularly helpful for making this cake. A little bit of prep work that the original recipe doesn’t include really helps you whip this up in a jiffy.

This Orange Walnut Bundt Cake satisfies my cravings for a sweet treat without making me feel guilty afterward. It’s great with a cuppa tea or coffee, and, of course, for nibbling on while turning page after page of your latest read.

Happy New Year! Resolution 2019: Eat more (healthy) cake.

Orange Walnut Bundt Cake

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Prep Time 50 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Servings 14 servings

Ingredients

  

DATE FILLING INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup pitted whole dates
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp kosher salt
• 1/4 cup fresh orange juice
• hot water

CAKE INGREDIENTS

• 2 1/8 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 2/3 cup plain low fat Greek Yogurt, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 tbsp orange zest
• 1/2 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

GLAZE INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 3 tbsp confectioner's sugar
• 1/2 tsp orange zest
• 1 tbsp fresh orange juice

Instructions

 

PREP INSTRUCTIONS

• Place dates in a small bowl and cover with hot water. Let stand until the dates are softened, about 30 minutes. Then drain and set aside.
• Place walnuts in a food processor and pulse a few times to lightly chop. Do not grind. Remove chopped nuts and set aside. Carefully wipe out the food processor bowl and blade, but don’t worry if small bits of nuts remain.
• Zest your orange(s), keeping the zest separate for the cake batter and for the glaze. Set aside, and keep the zest for the glaze covered with plastic wrap since it might be awhile before you use it.
• Juice the orange(s) you just zested, again separating the juice for the filling, the cake batter, and the glaze. Set aside.

BAKING INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat your oven to 350F and spray a 12-cup Bundt pan with baking spray.
• Make the filling: Take the drained dates and add them to the food processor, along with 1 tsp of vanilla, 1 tsp cinnamon, and 1/8 tsp kosher salt. Pulse the ingredients lightly while adding ¼ cup fresh orange juice a little at a time until the mixture is smooth. You may need to stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure all ingredients are incorporated. Set aside.
• Make the cake batter: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, ½ tsp cinnamon, ½ tsp cardamom, and ¼ tsp salt in a large bowl.
• In a separate medium bowl, whisk together 2/3 cup yogurt, brown sugar, oil, eggs, 1 tbsp orange zest, ½ cup juice, and 1 tsp vanilla.
• Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients using swift strokes until just combined. Do not overmix. You should have a light, spongy cake batter.
• Set aside 1 ½ cups of the batter, then pour the remaining batter into the prepared Bundt pan. Drop spoonfuls of the date filling on top of the batter in the pan and spread evenly so the batter is mostly covered.
• Sprinkle the chopped nuts over the filling so the date mixture is covered. Then drop spoonfuls of the reserved 1 ½ cups of batter over the nuts, like you did with the date filling, and spread the batter evenly so that the nuts are mostly covered.
• Place your Budnt pan in the oven and bake at 350F for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
• Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes, then run a butter knife lightly along the edges of the pan to loosen the cake. Invert the cake onto a cooling rack and let cool completely.

GLAZE INSTRUCTIONS

• The cake should be completely cool before you add the glaze.
• Whisk together the ¼ cup of yogurt, powdered sugar, ½ tsp reserved orange zest, and 1 tbsp orange juice to form a thick glaze.
• Drizzle the glaze over the cake using a large spoon, then place cake in the fridge to let glaze set, about 30 minutes.

Notes

Recipe Notes:

**Ground cardamom is hella expensive considering the size of most spice containers and the fact that recipes usually call for a teaspoon or so at a time. I’ve finally purchased my own cardamom, but at the time I made this recipe, I ended up borrowing the amount I needed from a friend. Unless you’re planning to do a lot of baking or cooking with this spice, I highly recommend asking a culinary-inclined neighbor, friend, or co-worker if you can borrow the amount you need for this recipe. Offer payment in the form of a slice of cake.

This recipe is lightly adapted from Cooking Light: https://www.cookinglight.com/recipes/orange-walnut-coffee-cake