Why You’ll Love This Granola Cake Recipe

This delightful granola cake is incredibly versatile and can be enjoyed in so many ways. It’s absolutely fantastic with a steaming cup of coffee or tea, making it a perfect companion for your morning routine or an afternoon pick-me-up. Many cakes are delicious but often come loaded with calories, heavy frostings, and creamy fillings. While there are certainly sugar-free and ultra-healthy cake options available, this particular granola cake strikes a wonderful balance.

It isn’t entirely sugar-free, but it’s undeniably a healthier alternative to many traditional cakes. By incorporating wholesome ingredients like granola and whole wheat flour, and enriching it with the natural sweetness of currants and the satisfying crunch of walnuts, this recipe delivers a cake that is exceptionally moist, incredibly flavorful, and truly rich. Its robust texture and delightful taste make it an excellent choice not just for dessert, but also as a fulfilling breakfast cake or a wholesome snack during your coffee break. It’s a treat you can feel good about enjoying!

If your passion lies in baking, you’ll find a wealth of inspiration and many more delicious ideas on my sweet baking page. Discover other fantastic recipes like my beloved gingerbread cake with walnuts and currants, the classic chocolate vanilla marble cake, or the wonderfully zesty tangerine yogurt cake.

Essential Ingredients for this Crunchy Granola Pound Cake

To embark on the journey of creating this delicious granola cake, you’ll need a selection of high-quality ingredients. Each component plays a vital role in achieving the cake’s perfect balance of flavor, texture, and wholesome goodness. You’ll find the precise measurements detailed in the comprehensive recipe card located at the very bottom of this blog post. For now, let’s dive into what makes each ingredient special:

• Currants: These small, dried berries are the star of the fruity filling, contributing a delightful tartness and natural sweetness that beautifully complements the richer flavors of the cake. For an extra burst of juiciness and to prevent them from burning during baking, remember to soak them in hot water beforehand. If currants aren’t available, you could also experiment with raisins or dried cranberries for a similar effect.
• Walnuts: Walnuts are crucial for providing a wonderful nutty flavor and a satisfying crunch that contrasts with the soft cake crumb. We highly recommend toasting them lightly before adding to the batter to enhance their natural oils and deepen their flavor profile significantly. If walnuts aren’t your preference, almonds or pecans make excellent substitutes, offering their own unique nutty notes. For those with nut allergies, simply omit the walnuts; the recipe will still yield a delicious cake without any further adjustments.
• Unsalted Butter: Butter provides richness, moisture, and aids in creating that tender cake texture. Using unsalted butter gives you full control over the salt content in your recipe. Ensure it’s at room temperature for optimal creaming with sugar.
• Granulated Sugar: Beyond just sweetening the breakfast cake, sugar works with butter to create a light and airy base for the batter. It also contributes to the cake’s moistness and golden-brown crust.
• Salt: A small amount of salt is essential in baking, not to make the cake salty, but to balance and enhance all the other flavors, especially the sweetness, making the cake taste more rounded and complex.
• Large Eggs: Eggs serve multiple purposes in this granola cake. They bind the ingredients together, providing structure, and contribute significantly to the cake’s richness, moisture, and tender crumb. Ensure your eggs are at room temperature for better emulsification with the butter and sugar mixture.
• Whole Wheat Flour: This is a key ingredient for the “healthier” aspect of our cake. Unlike refined wheat flour, whole wheat flour retains all parts of the grain – the bran, germ, and endosperm. This means it’s packed with more fiber, nutrients, and a subtly earthy flavor that adds depth to the cake. It contributes to a heartier, yet still tender, texture.
• Granola: The namesake ingredient! Granola is a breakfast food typically made from rolled oats, nuts, seeds, a sweetener (like honey or maple syrup), and sometimes dried fruit. It adds an incredible layer of texture, flavor, and additional nutrients to the cake. You can use your favorite store-bought granola, or if you’re feeling adventurous, this chocolate granola recipe makes a delicious homemade addition!

How to Prepare Walnut & Currant Granola Cake: A Step-by-Step Guide

Creating this delicious Walnut & Currant Granola Cake is a straightforward process, and with these detailed steps, you’ll achieve perfect results every time. A fully printable recipe card with all measurements and a concise description is available at the bottom of this blog post for your convenience. Let’s get baking!

1. Prepare the Base: In a large mixing bowl, combine the room temperature butter and sugar. Using an electric mixer, cream them together on high speed for approximately 3 minutes. This crucial step incorporates air, making the cake lighter and more tender. The mixture should become light, fluffy, and pale in color.
2. Incorporate Wet Ingredients: Add the salt to the creamed butter and sugar. Then, add the eggs one at a time, ensuring each egg is fully incorporated into the batter before adding the next. This prevents the batter from curdling and ensures a smooth, cohesive mixture.
3. Add Dry Ingredients: Reduce the mixer speed to low. Gradually add the whole wheat flour to the batter. Mix just until the flour is incorporated. Be careful not to overmix at this stage, as overmixing can develop the gluten too much, resulting in a tough cake. Stop mixing as soon as no dry streaks of flour remain.
4. Fold in the Granola: Gently fold the granola into the batter using a spatula. This ensures the granola is evenly distributed without crushing it too much, preserving its delightful crunch.
5. Mix in the Currants: Next, add the pre-soaked and drained currants to the batter. Fold them in gently with the spatula until they are well dispersed throughout the mixture.
6. Bake to Perfection: Pour the prepared batter into your greased and floured baking tin. Spread it evenly. Bake in the preheated oven for about an hour, or until a wooden skewer or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. This indicates the cake is fully cooked through.
7. Cooling Process: Once baked, remove the cake from the oven. Let it cool in the tin on a wire rack for about five minutes. This short resting period allows the cake to firm up slightly and shrink away from the sides of the pan, making it much easier to release without sticking or breaking. After five minutes, carefully invert the cake onto the wire rack to cool completely.

Baking Tips and Delicious Variations for Your Granola Cake

Achieving the perfect granola cake is easy with these helpful tips and creative variations. Whether you’re a seasoned baker or just starting out, these insights will elevate your baking experience and ensure your cake is always a showstopper.

• Proper Cooling: For a clean release and to prevent your cake from sticking, always allow the granola cake to rest in its baking pan for approximately five minutes after taking it out of the oven. This brief period enables the cake to firm up and contract slightly from the edges of the pan, making it considerably easier to remove without damage. Once removed, transfer it to a wire rack to cool completely.
• Checking for Doneness: The best way to determine if your cake is perfectly baked is by inserting a wooden skewer or toothpick into the thickest part of the cake, usually the center. If it comes out clean or with only a few moist crumbs attached, your cake is done and ready to be removed from the oven. If it’s wet, bake for a few more minutes and retest.
• Preparing Currants: To ensure your currants remain plump and juicy and do not burn during the baking process, it’s highly recommended to soak them in hot water for at least 15 minutes before adding them to the batter. Drain them thoroughly before use.
• Enhancing Walnuts: For an even more profound nutty flavor, lightly toast your walnuts in a dry pan over low heat for about 3-5 minutes until fragrant. This simple step brings out their natural oils and intensifies their taste. Allow them to cool before adding to the batter.
• Exciting Variations: Feel free to customize your granola cake with additional flavors! You could stir in about ¼ cup of finely chopped apples for a touch of autumnal sweetness and moisture. Alternatively, add ¼ cup of chocolate chips for a delightful chocolatey surprise in every bite. For the truly indulgent, why not add both for an irresistible combination of fruit, nuts, and chocolate? You could also experiment with a pinch of cinnamon or nutmeg for a warmer spice profile.
• Nut Substitutions: While walnuts are excellent, feel free to swap them for other nuts like pecans or almonds to change the flavor slightly. Remember to consider allergies when making substitutions.
• Serving Suggestions: This cake is incredibly versatile. Enjoy it as a hearty breakfast with a dollop of Greek yogurt and fresh berries, as an afternoon snack with a cup of coffee, or as a lighter dessert.

Did you make this delicious recipe? Tag #byandreajanssen via Instagram! I love to see what your creation looks like and regularly share the most beautiful photos of you! Did you like this recipe? Then leave a rating on the recipe card! Your feedback helps other home cooks and me enormously.

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Granola Cake Recipe

Andréa