Photographer: James Moffatt. Stylists: Olivia Blackmore, Kate Brown.
Finished with a drizzle of toffee icing, this coffee and walnut cake is the perfect afternoon tea treat, offering complex flavours and a great, dense texture. Made in a baba cake pan, this cake also looks amazing, so it’s the perfect show-stopper dessert when entertaining.
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Ingredients
Method
Preheat oven to 160°C. Grease a 22cm (9in) baba cake pan well; dust with flour, shake out excess.
Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat; stir in brown sugar, cinnamon and walnuts. Cool.
Beat extra butter and caster sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Stir in sifted flours, then coffee. Spread one-third of the cake mixture into base of pan; sprinkle with one-third of the walnut mixture. Top with remaining cake mixture.
Bake cake for 55 minutes. Leave in pan for 5 minutes before turning onto a wire rack over an oven tray. Cool
Make toffee drizzle. Stir sugar and the water in a small saucepan over medium heat, without boiling, until sugar dissolves; bring to the boil. Reduce heat; simmer, without stirring, until caramel in colour. Add cream; stir for 1 minute or until mixture is thickened slightly.
Working quickly, drizzle toffee on top of cake; top with remaining walnut mixture, pressing down lightly.
Can I make the coffee and walnut cake ahead of time?
This recipe is best made on the day of serving.
What is a baba cake pan?
Baba cake pans are decorated large ring pans, similar to bundt pans. You can buy them from cookware shops. Grease the pan well before adding the mixture. See our collection of bundt cake recipes.
