Coffee and Walnut Spelt Cake (with Coffee Cream Cheese Buttercream Frosting)
This coffee and walnut spelt cake recipe is made with spelt flour. Simple to make, it is smothered in rich, irresistible coffee cream cheese frosting.
Ingredients
Cake:
- 50g (⅓ cup) walnuts (extra for decorating)
- 225g (1 cup) butter (softened)
- 225g (1 cup + 2 tbs) sugar
- 4 eggs (large)
- 200g (1⅔ cups) spelt flour (see note 1)
- 2½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1½ tbs instant coffee powder
- 3 tbs milk
Frosting:
- 80g (⅓ cup) butter
- 90g (¾ cup) cream cheese
- 250-350g (1½ - 2¼ cups) icing / powdered sugar
- 1 tsp hot water
- 1 tbs instant coffee powder
- walnuts (decoration - optional)
Instructions
Cake:
- Crush your walnuts. Do this by either placing your nuts in a bag, and bashing with a rolling pin. Or, blitz them in a food processor. Put them to one side for a short while.
- Pre-heat the oven to 175ºC (350°F).
- Grease and line 2 x 7" (18cm) cake tins (you can use two 8" pans but the layers will be thinner).
- In a food processor, or by hand, beat the sugar and butter together until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs, one at a time.
- Combine the walnuts, flour, baking powder and baking soda.
- Fold into the wet ingredients.
- Mix the coffee and milk together then mix into the batter. A fairly soft dropping consistency should be achieved (add a little more milk if needed).
- Divide the mixture equally between the two pans and then bake for around 30-35 minutes (if baking 8" cakes, bake for 20-25 minutes).
- The cakes are ready when they bounce back after being gently pushed down (or an inserted skewer comes out almost clean).
- Remove from the oven and let them cool for about ten minutes.
- If using spring-form pans, remove the sides until the cakes are fairly cool and then turn out onto a wire rack (top side down) until they are completely cold.
Frosting:
- Beat the butter and cream cheese together until nice and smooth.
- Add the coffee to the water and stir in.
- Finally, add the icing sugar just until a thick, spreadable consistency is achieved.
- Spread half of the frosting on the flat side of one of the cakes.
- Place the other cake on top and then slather the remaining frosting all over the top of it.
- Decorate with pretty walnuts (I used some whole and some crushed).
- This is a big cake, tall cake so you only need thin slices. Enjoy!
Notes
This recipe for coffee and walnut spelt cake originally appeared on my first blog, The Culinary Jumble, in May 2016. It has been updated to include spelt flour (please see instructions below regarding using normal flour). The recipe has been adapted from Nigella Lawson's.
I have converted grams to cups/ounces/tablespoons using online converters. Although I have no reason to believe they are inaccurate, please be aware that I have not made this recipe with imperial measurements.
- You can use spelt or regular flour for this recipe (just use the same amount).
