Gluten-Free Karidopita (Greek Walnut Cake)

Melt in your mouth spiced walnut cake without gluten!

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With a few tweaks, I made a gluten-free karidopita, a Greek walnut cake, and it came out even more tender than my original recipe. It’s juicy, sweet, moist, and so delicious! I used King Arthur Gluten-Free Flour, which I found at Costco, and you can also find it in the supermarket. It’s softer than all-purpose flour, so the cake is more tender and only needs half the syrup I typically use for this cake. As a karidopita, it’s not quite as syrupy but definitely just as delicious!

Why everyone will love it

Tender, moist cake

Warm cinnamon, clove spice

Mild walnut crunch

Perfectly spiced sugar-dusted walnut crunch topping

A melt-in-your-mouth gluten-free classic Greek spiced walnut cake that’s easy to make!

Here’s what you’ll need

The Syrup:

• Granulated sugar
• Whole cloves
• Cinnamon stick
• Water
• Honey –Greek honey has the best flavor
• Pure vanilla extract

The Cake:

• King Arthur Gluten-free Flour
• Baking powder
• Baking soda
• Ground cinnamon
• Ground cloves
• Salt
• Eggs at room temperature
• Granulated sugar
• Olive oil
• Milk at room temperature
• Pure vanilla extract
• Ground walnuts plus one tablespoon of flour

The topping:

• Ground walnuts
• Ground cinnamon
• Confectioner’s sugar

How to make Gluten-Free Karidopita (Greek Walnut Cake)

The syrup: 

1. Combine the sugar, water, cloves, and cinnamon in a saucepan and bring to a boil.
2. As soon as the sugar dissolves, remove the pan from the heat and add the honey and vanilla extract.
3. Stir together and set aside to cool completely.

Spiced walnut cake:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 °F, 180 °C.
2. Grease an 8-inch baking pan with oil or cooking spray.
3. Whisk together the flour, cinnamon, ground clove, baking powder, and baking soda in a bowl and set aside.
4. In the bowl of a tabletop mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the eggs, sugar, and vanilla extract on high speed until thick and fluffy –about 3-4 minutes.
5. Add the olive oil and milk and whisk together.
6. Slowly add the flour mixture and whisk together until just combined. **Do not over-mix! Otherwise, your cake will not be light and fluffy. **
7. Toss the walnuts with the tablespoon of flour and add to the batter.
8. Whisk together until incorporated, and then pour the batter into the prepared pan.
9. Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
10. As soon as the cake is done baking, remove it from the oven and poke holes all over with a toothpick.
11. Pour all the cooled honey syrup over the cake slowly, allowing it to be absorbed.
12. Allow the cake to cool completely –about an hour.
13. While the cake cools, combine the walnuts with the cinnamon for the topping and toss them together.
14. Sprinkle the mixture over the cake and dust with the confectioner’s sugar.

Serving

This cake has all the warm spices of the holidays and pairs perfectly with a hot cup of Greek coffee or creamy hot chocolate. Speaking of chocolate, you could switch out the walnut cinnamon topping with a chocolaty ganache, just like I did with my Greek Chocolate Walnut Karidopita Cake. No matter what you top it or serve it with, cut it into squares, rectangles, or triangles for serving. If you have cake left over, it can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Kali Orexi!

More gluten-free desserts

• Gluten-Free Almond & Orange Cake
• AMYGDALOTA: GREEK-STYLE CHEWY ALMOND COOKIES
• PAVLOVA WITH LEMON CREAM & BERRIES
• VANILLA PUDDING
• CHOCOLATE MOUSSE
• AMARETTI COOKIES
• Rizogalo: Greek Rice Pudding
• CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES

Continue to Content

Gluten-Free Karidopita (Greek Walnut Cake)

Yield: 6 servings

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Ingredients

For the Syrup:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 5-6 whole cloves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Cake:

• 1 cup (140g) King Arthur Gluten-free Flour
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 eggs at room temperature
• 1/2 cup (110g) granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup milk at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup ground walnuts plus 1 tablespoon flour

For the topping:

• 1/2 cup ground walnuts
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• confectioner's sugar

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 °F, 180 °C.

Grease an 8-inch baking pan with oil or cooking spray.

Make the syrup: Combine the sugar, water, cinamon, and cloves in a small saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil and as soon as the sugar has dissolved remove the pan from the heat and add the honey and vanilla. Stir together and set aside to cool completely.

Make the cake:

Combine the flour, cinnamon, ground clove, baking powder, and baking soda together in a bowl. Whisk together and set aside.

In the bowl of a tabletop mixer that has been fitted with the whisk attachment, combine the eggs and sugar along with the vanilla extract. Whisk together on high speed until thick and fluffy. About 3-4 minutes.

Add the olive oil and mil and whisk together. Add the flour mixture and whisk together until just combined.

Toss the walnuts together with the tablespoon of flour and add to the batter. Whisk together until incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake on the center rack of the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick that has been inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Poke the cake all around with a toothpick and pour the cooled syrup over the cake.

Allow the cake to cool completely. About an hour.

To make the topping, combine the walnuts with the cinnamon and toss together. Sprinkle the mixture over the cake and dust with confectioner's sugar. Cut into serving slices and serve with Greek coffee. Kali Orexi!

Notes

The cake can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

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