Finnish spice cake is a tender and flavorful bundt cake that’s perfect for any occasion that calls for a cake! The batter whips up so easily, but a cute bundt pan makes this cake look stunning. The combination of lots of butter, yogurt and eggs makes for a rich & tender crumb and a slight crust that you’ll love. I personally love spice cake during the cooler months, but there’s absolutely no rule which says you can’t eat cinnamon in July (at least not that I’ve been made aware of).
Tips & FAQ’s for Finnish Spice Cake:
-a lot of recipes for this cake recommend preparing the pan with both butter & a layer of breadcrumbs. I have not found the breadcrumbs to be necessary at all with my bundt pan, and I just use butter-but if you have issues with your pan sticking, try lining it with breadcrumbs!
-I did not include cardamom in this recipe, because oddly enough, I don’t find that it adds much to this particular cake. If you wish, you can definitely add 1/2-1tsp ground cardamom to your batter with the rest of the spices.
-Traditionally, this cake is served un-iced, with just a dusting of powdered sugar. I am a cream cheese frosting fanatic and like to add a cream cheese whipped cream frosting to this cake! The frosting recipe is included in the recipe notes below- you can use it or skip it.
-some people like to include raisins in this cake- you can stir in 1 cup of raisins at the end of mixing, after you add the flour.
What can I use instead of yogurt?
You can substitute sour cream or buttermilk for the plain Greek yogurt in this recipe. If you have Finnish sour milk products like piima or viili on hand, I strongly suspect that those would work wonderfully as well, though I haven’t been able to test that myself.
How should I store Finnish spice cake?
This cake (without the frosting) can be stored, covered, at room temperature for a few days- or wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for up to three months or so.
Tools & Equipment for Finnish Spice Cake
- Bundt pan-8-10 cups is a good size!
- Large mixing bowl
- Medium mixing bowl
- Whisk & spatula
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Kitchen scale-optional
- Electric handheld mixer, if making the frosting
Ingredients for Finnish Spice Cake
For the cake:
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Ground cinnamon
- Ground ginger
- Ground cloves
- Ground nutmeg (optional)
- Eggs
- Plain Greek yogurt– or see notes for substitutes
- Unsalted butter, melted
- Vanilla extract
For the frosting (optional):
- Cream cheese– full fat is best, at room temperature
- Powdered sugar
- Sea salt
- Vanilla extract
- Heavy cream
The Process: How to Make Finnish Spice Cake
Grease your bundt pan well with about 1 Tablespoon of soft butter and set aside. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.
In a microwave safe small bowl, melt butter (if not done already) and set aside to cool slightly.
In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves & nutmeg if using. Set aside.
Add eggs and yogurt to a large bowl and whisk until mixed well. Add vanilla and melted butter to the egg mixture and mix well, then add sugar and whisk thoroughly again.
Gradually add the dry ingredients, whisking well. Your end result will be a thick batter.
Pour batter (well…scoop it) into your prepared pan. Gently smooth the top of the batter.
Bake 50-55 minutes. The cake will have risen in the pan, be browned and look set.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes, on a cooling rack or just on the stove, then place a large plate over the bundt pan and flip the cake onto the plate.
Serve slightly warm or at room temperature. Dust the whole cake with a light layer of icing sugar prior to slicing. If you want, proceed with the frosting instructions below!
For the optional cream cheese whipped cream frosting:
Beat the cream cheese with a handheld electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar (sifted always works best!) and continue to beat until all the sugar is incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl a couple of times with a spatula. Add the sugar slowly & slow down the mixer speed to avoid powdered sugar explosions.
Add the pinch of salt and vanilla extract and beat well briefly until combined.
With the mixer running, slowly & steadily add in the heavy cream. Continue to beat as the cream incorporates until you have a light, fluffy frosting that forms stiff peaks.
You can frost the top of the entire cake once it’s cooled if you wish or simply give guests the option of adding a dollop of frosting to their individual slice! I can’t think of a better accompaniment to an afternoon cup of coffee.
Finnish Spice Cake (Maustekakku)
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 1 Tbsp soft butter for the pan
- 2 cups all-purpose flour 250 g
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg optional
- 3 eggs
- 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt 210 g
- 1 cup unsalted butter, melted 226 g/2 sticks
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup granulated sugar 200 g
For the optional cream cheese whipped cream frosting:
- 8 oz full fat cream cheese 227 g, room temperature
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted 120 g
- pinch sea salt
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cup heavy cream 360 g, very cold
Instructions
- Grease your bundt pan well with about 1 Tablespoon of soft butter and set aside. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.
- In a microwave safe small bowl, melt butter (if not done already) and set aside to cool slightly.
- In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves & nutmeg if using. Set aside.
- Add eggs and yogurt to a large bowl and whisk until mixed well. Add vanilla and melted butter to the egg mixture and mix well, then add sugar and whisk thoroughly again.
- Gradually add the dry ingredients, whisking well. Your end result will be a thick batter.
- Scoop the batter into your prepared pan. Gently smooth the top of the batter.
- Bake 50-55 minutes. The cake will have risen in the pan, be browned and look set.
- Let the cake cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes, on a cooling rack or just on the stove, then place a large plate over the bundt pan and flip the cake onto the plate. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature. Dust the whole cake with a light layer of icing sugar prior to slicing. If you want, proceed with the frosting instructions below!
- Make the frosting: Beat the cream cheese with a handheld electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy.
- Add the powdered sugar (sifted always works best!) and continue to beat until all the sugar is incorporated and the mixture is smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl a couple of times with a spatula. Add the sugar slowly & slow down the mixer speed to avoid powdered sugar explosions.
- Add the pinch of salt and vanilla extract and beat well briefly until combined.
- With the mixer running, slowly & steadily add in the heavy cream. Continue to beat as the cream incorporates until you have a light, fluffy frosting that forms stiff peaks
- . You can frost the top of the entire cake once it's cooled if you wish or simply give guests the option of adding a dollop of frosting to their individual slice!
Notes
Nutrition
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Did you make this recipe? Let me know how it went in the comments! If you share on Instagram, please tag me at @sisuhomemaker. And I always love to hear from you- send questions, comments, concerns, etc to carol@sisuhomemaker.com!
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