Chai tiramisu cake has a delicious, moist, chai-infused cake with layers of cardamom cream dusted with a cocoa-chai topping. It is an absolutely fabulous fusion dessert perfect for Diwali or any special occasion! (soy-free with gluten-free or nut-free option)

Recipe Snapshot

  • Prep time: 45 minutes
  • Cook time: 40 minutes
  • Total time: 115 minutes
  • Yield: 8
  • Category: cake, Dessert
  • Cuisine: Indian Fusion

Ingredients

Cake Dry Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • ⅛ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt

Cake Wet Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract (or vanilla powder (add with dry ingredients))
  • 1 cup non-dairy milk

For the Chai

  • ½ cup water
  • 1 tablespoon grated ginger
  • 2 teaspoons chai spice blend (or more, to taste)
  • 4 teaspoons loose leaf tea (or 4 black tea bags)
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 cups non-dairy milk (such as oat milk, that is thick and withstands boiling without changing flavor)

For the Cardamom Cream Layer

  • 1 cup raw cashews (soaked in hot water for 10 minutes then drained)
  • 15 ounce can full-fat coconut milk
  • ¾ cup non-dairy yogurt (almond, cashew, or cashew-coconut yogurt)
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract (or vanilla powder)
  • ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
  • ¼ cup sugar

For Topping

  • 2 teaspoons cocoa powder
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon (or cardamom or chai spice)

Method

Make the cake.

  1. Grease or line an 8x10” baking dish (or use a 9x9” or similar-sized). Preheat the oven to 350°F (177° C).
  2. Add all the dry ingredients in a bowl, and mix well. If you’re using vanilla powder, add that in as well. Then, add the wet ingredients. Mix until the dry ingredients are incorporated. If the batter is too thick, add more non-dairy milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until you get a flowy batter.
  3. Transfer the batter into your baking dish, even it out with a spatula, and bake. Check at the 25 minutes with a toothpick in the center. If the toothpick comes out clean, remove the cake from the oven. Otherwise, bake it for 5 to 10 minutes more, until the toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Metal baking dishes bake faster, while stoneware takes longer. Cool the cake on the counter for 10 minutes, then cover the pan with a clean kitchen towel, and transfer to the fridge to cool, so it will release easily from the baking pan.

Meanwhile, make the chai and the cardamom cream.

  1. Add water, ginger, chai spice, tea, and sugar to a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then gradually pour in the non-dairy milk. Bring to a boil again, reduce the heat to low, then bring to a boil again. Switch off the heat, strain, and set the chai aside cool.
  2. Blend cashews, coconut milk, yogurt, cornstarch, vanilla, cardamom, and sugar until smooth. Blend for a minute, then let the blender sit for 3 to 4 minutes, then blend again for half a minute. Repeat until you have a really smooth, creamy mixture with no pieces of cashew at all.
  3. Transfer the cashew mixture to a skillet. Rinse the blender with 1/4 cup water and add that to the pan, and cook over medium heat, stirring until it bubbles a little bit. Then, reduce the heat to medium-low and continue to cook, stirring, until it thickens. It may get lumpy at first, then smooth out. Once evenly thick and smooth, turn off the heat and let the mixture cool. The mixture will be pretty thick and you can use it to layer on the cake once it reaches room temperature. To fasten the process, refrigerate the cream to cool or to thicken more.

Assemble the chai tiramisu.

  1. Slice the cooled cake into two layers using a sharp, serrated knife. If the cake breaks a little bit, that’s ok, since we are just going to soak it in chai and slather it in cream in just a second.
  2. Place one slice cut-side-up in your baking pan. Poke holes into the cake, if you want for extra soaking, then soak it with half of the chai. Spread half the chilled cream evenly over the top. Then, add the second slice of cake on top cut-side-up, poke holes again, and soak with the remaining chai and spread the remaining cream on top.
  3. For the topping, mix the cocoa powder with chai spice, cardamom, or cinnamon, sift over the cake. You can sift it on everywhere or use stencils to make shapes on top with the cocoa mixture. Refrigerate at least 1 hour before slicing and serving. You can serve immediately, but the flavors meld as it sits.

Kiyaan Singh’s Kitchen Note

Keep this recipe as a working base: cook once as written, then adjust spice, texture, and serving style for your own table.