Moist, delicious cardamom-orange coffee cake topped with an almond cinnamon sugar topping, baked in cute mini loaf pans so they’re easy to share and sturdy enough to mail to far away friends. 

The Flying Brownie by Shirley Fan is an adorable cookbook with 100 recipes for homemade treats that are perfect for packing and shipping to friends and family. Each recipe includes tips on shipping and there’s a Care Packages 101 section to help you get your treats to your loved ones in just baked condition.

The publisher sent me a free copy of the cookbook to review and it came just in time. I was baking Snickerdoodle bread to take to the Big Traveling Potluck and had to carry the bread on the airplane. I used the tips in the book, double wrapped it in plastic wrap, cushioned it with styrofoam peanuts, and put it in a sturdy box, and my bread arrived in perfect condition.

The first time I tried cardamom was when it was used in a Daring Bakers challenge, and I immediately fell in love with it. It has a very unique, spicy, almost citrusy flavor and pairs really well with citrus in baking. It’s native to India but is now used throughout the world in sweet and savory dishes.

Since I love cardamom in baked goods, the Cardamom-Orange Coffee Cake recipe jumped out at me. I loved that I could make it with ingredients I always have on hand. The recipe didn’t disappoint. It was moist and tender with a great spicy, citrus flavor and the crunchy, sweet almond topping was the perfect way to dress it up.

If you’re looking for recipes and tips on shipping treats to your friends and family, I highly recommend this book.

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Yield: 1 5x9-inch loaf

Cardamom-Orange Coffee Cake Loaf

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Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

Cake

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons ground cardamom
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest

Topping

• 2 tablespoons sliced almonds
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350º. Grease and flour a 5x9-inch loaf pan or line with parchment paper; set aside. I used two mini loaf pans (5 3/4 x 3 1/4 x 2 ¼)
2. In a medium-size bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cardamom, cinnamon, and salt.
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary. Add the sour cream and orange zest and mix for another minute or two, until incorporated. Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
4. In a small bowl, combine the topping ingredients. Scatter the topping over the batter. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 50 minutes. (Bake mini loaves for 35 minutes.)
5. Cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in a large zipper top plastic bag.