Christmas Coffee & Walnut Cake

Christmas Coffee & Walnut Cake

The classic combo is made extra sumptuous with mascarpone frosting - a traditional sponge for cake sales and parties
PREP: 45 MINS
COOK: 30 MINS
plus cooling
EASY Cooking 
Serving
CUTS INTO 10 SLICES
Coffee & walnut cake
Coffee & walnut cake
12345(19 ratings)
By Sarah Cook Magazine subscription – 5 issues for £5
PREP: 45 MINS
COOK: 30 MINS
plus cooling
EASY CUTS INTO 10 SLICES

Ingredients

250g pack softened butter, plus extra for the tins
100ml strong black coffee (made with 2 tbsp coffee granules), cooled
280g self-raising flour
250g golden caster sugar
½ tsp baking powder
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
85g walnut, 2 tbsp roughly chopped, the rest finely chopped
For the filling
100g icing sugar, sifted, plus a little extra for dusting
150ml double cream
100 g mascarpone, at room temperature

Method

Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Butter 2 x 20cm round cake tins and line with baking parchment. Set aside 1 tbsp of the coffee for the filling.
Beat the butter, flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, vanilla and half the remaining coffee in a large bowl with an electric whisk until lump-free. Fold in the finely chopped walnuts, then divide between the tins and roughly spread. Scatter the roughly chopped walnuts over one of the cakes. Bake the cakes for 25-30 mins until golden and risen, and a skewer poked in comes out clean. Drizzle the plain cake with the remaining coffee. Cool the cakes in the tins.
Meanwhile, make the filling: beat together the icing sugar, cream and mascarpone, then fold in the reserved 2 tbsp coffee. Spread over the plain cake, then cover with the walnut-topped cake and dust with a little icing sugar.

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Christmas cake 2017

 Ingredients

• 225g/8oz plain flour
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ tsp mixed spice
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 200g/7oz butter
• 200g/7oz dark brown sugar
• 2 tbsp black treacle
• 1 tbsp marmalade
• ¼ tsp vanilla essence
• 4 free-range eggs, lightly beaten
• 800g/1¾lb mixed dried fruits
• 100g/3½oz chopped mixed peel
• 150g/5oz glacé cherries, halved
• 100g/3½oz blanched almonds, chopped
• brandy

To decorate

• 200g/7oz marzipan
• 1-2 tbsp apricot jam, warmed

For the royal icing

• 3 free-range egg whites
• 600g/1lb 5oz icing sugar, sieved
• 1½ tsp liquid glycerine - optional
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 
  

• Method

  1. Heat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas2. Grease a 20cm/8inch round or an 18cm/7inch square cake tin and line the bottom and sides with baking parchment.
  2. Sieve the flour, salt, mixed spice and cinnamon into a bowl.
  3. Cream the butter and the sugar in a large mixing bowl and then mix in the sugar, treacle, marmalade and vanilla essence until light and fluffy.
  4. Mix the eggs a little at a time into the mixture adding a tablespoon of flour mixture with the last amount.
  5. Fold in the remaining flour mixture until well mixed and then mix in the dried fruit, mixed peel, glace cherries and the almonds.
  6. Turn the mixture into the prepared tin and make a slight hollow in the centre.
  7. Bake in the oven for 3 hours and then test with a skewer. If not ready bake for up to another hour testing every 20 minutes until the skewer comes out clean. You may need to cover the top with a piece of foil if it begins to look too dark.
  8. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 15 minutes. Turn out on to a wire rack and leave to cool.
  9. Once cool, make a few holes in the cake with a skewer and pour over 3-4 tbsp of brandy. Let the brandy soak into the cake. Store the cake wrapped in foil and in an airtight tin or plastic container, holes side up. For a rich and moist cake, spoon over a few tablespoons of brandy every week until you are ready to ice and decorate your cake.
  10. To decorate the cake, place the cake on a foil board or cake plate. Dust your hands and the work surface with a little icing sugar and knead the marzipan until soft. Roll out half the marzipan to fit the top of the cake and roll out the rest in strips to fit around the sides of the cake.
  11. Brush the cake all over with the warmed apricot jam and then place the marzipan on top and around the cake. Cover the cake with a clean tea towel and then leave in a cool place to dry for at least one day.
  12. To make the icing, lightly whisk the egg whites adding the sugar at intervals. Beat well until the icing reaches soft peaks. Add the glycerine if using and the lemon juice. Spread icing all over cake either flat iced using a clean ruler or by forming soft peaks. Decorate with Christmas ornaments.
      

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