Coffee and Walnut Cake

Lisa Onykhonie

THERE'S MORE WHERE THIS CAME FROM!

Ingredients

For the cake:
100g/4oz dairy-free spread/margarine
150g/6oz soft brown sugar
200g/8oz self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tbsp instant coffee granules dissolved in 200ml/8 fl oz boiling water (or cooled espresso/filter coffee)
1 tsp white wine or cider vinegar
1 tsp xanthan gum*
100g/4oz roughly chopped nuts (walnuts, pecans or hazelnuts) – reserve 25g/1 oz to top the cake
For the vegan butter-cream icing/frosting:
1 tbsp coffee dissolved in 3 tbsp boiling water
200g/8oz icing sugar
50g/2oz dairy-free spread/margarine, softened

This is the best vegan sponge cake I have ever made, both in terms of taste and texture. I would challenge anyone to tell that it was vegan in a blind tasting!

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 25 minutes
Serves: 4

Method

Make up the coffee and set to one side to cool.
Pre-heat the oven to 170C/160C Fan/325F/Gas3.
Cream the spread and sugar.
Add all of the remaining ingredients (reserving 25g/1oz of the nuts) and mix until just combined.
Divide the mixture between 2 greased and lined 7″ sandwich tins.
Bake for 20-25 mins until the cakes are firm and spring back slightly if pressed gently in the centre.
Turn out onto a wire rack and remove the greaseproof paper.
Allow to cool before icing.
Soften the spread in a bowl and stir in the icing sugar.
Mix together, adding just enough of the coffee to make a thick, spreadable icing.
Spread in the middle and on top of the cake.
Decorate the top of the cake with the remaining nuts.

Suitable for freezing.

*I made this cake as an experiment, to try out the tub of xanthan gum I had recently bought. Xanthan gum is a binder and emulsifier which is often used in gluten-free baking – it can be found in the baking or free-from section of most big supermarkets.