This cake is flavoured with coffee and cardamom, sandwiched and topped with a layer of fresh cream, decorated with walnuts and simply perfect! –Chetna Makan
Coffee Cake With Cardamom
Chetna Makan's recipe for an easy-but-impressive coffee cake made with walnuts and cardamom, topped and filled with fluffy mascarpone frosting.
Ingredients
Cake
- 9 oz (250 g) unsalted butter softened, plus extra for greasing
- 2 tbsp instant coffee granules
- 4 tbsp hot milk
- 9 oz (250 g) superfine sugar
- 4 eggs
- 9 oz (250 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1½ tsp ground cardamom
- 1¾ oz (50 g) walnuts roughly chopped
Frosting
- 7 oz (200 g) mascarpone cheese
- 1¾ oz (50 g) superfine sugar
- 300 ml English double cream
- 1¾ oz (50 g) walnuts roughly chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease and line 2 × 8 in (20 cm) round cake tins.
- Dissolve the coffee granules in the hot milk in a small cup. Set aside.
- Beat together the sugar and butter in a mixing bowl using a wooden spoon until pale and fluffy – you can use a stand mixer or electric whisk if you prefer. Add the eggs and whisk for a few seconds. Now add the flour, baking powder, cardamom and coffee milk and whisk until combined well. Next, fold in the walnuts.
- Divide the batter equally between the prepared tins. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre of each cake comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the tins for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack and set aside to cool completely.
- To make the filling and topping, put the mascarpone and sugar into a bowl and beat together with a wooden spoon until smooth. Add the cream and whisk until the mixture forms soft peaks.
- Place 1 cake layer on a serving plate and spread with half the cream filling. Place the second cake layer carefully on top to sandwich the filling, then spread the remaining cream mixture on top and sprinkle with the walnuts.
