Dessert Polish
Aunt Krysia’s walnut cake
Aunt Krysia’s family recipe: ground-walnut cake layers filled with coffee cream. Finish the top with the cream or a chocolate glaze.
Ingredients
1 serving · metric units
These quantities make one whole cake in a 28 cm round tin. One serving in the calculator means the whole cake; the number of slices depends on how it is cut. Ingredient quantities remain fixed.
You’ll need
Mixer · Mixing bowls · Spatula · 28 cm round springform tin · Baking parchment · Saucepan and bowl for a bain-marie · Food thermometer · Knife for slicing the cake into layers
Let’s make it
0/9 stepsCake: whisk the egg mixture
Whisk the whites from the cake eggs to stiff peaks. Add the granulated sugar and whisk. Add the yolks and whisk again.
Stiff, glossy egg whites hold a distinct peak on the whisk. Cake: fold in the walnuts
Mix the ground walnuts with the breadcrumbs and baking powder. Fold gently and thoroughly into the egg mixture.
A spatula gently folds ground walnuts into the foam, keeping the mixture light and finely textured. Cake: transfer to the tin
Pour the mixture into a 28 cm round springform tin lined with baking parchment.
Thick walnut batter flows into a round springform tin lined with baking parchment. Cake: bake at 180°C
Bake at 180°C for about 1 hour.
60:00The risen walnut sponge has a golden-brown surface towards the end of baking. Important: immediately peel the parchment from the sides
Immediately after taking the cake out of the oven, peel the parchment away from its sides. Aunt Krysia highlights this step to prevent the centre from sinking. Leave the cake to cool completely before slicing it into layers.
The parchment is pulled away from the hot edge as soon as the cake leaves the oven. Coffee cream: beat the eggs over a bain-marie
Whisk the whole eggs with the icing sugar in a bowl over gently simmering water. Keep the base of the bowl above the water.
Whole eggs become pale and foamy as they are whisked over steam. Coffee cream: add the coffee and spirit
Dissolve the coffee in half a glass of boiling water. While whisking the whole eggs over the bain-marie, slowly pour in the coffee and rectified spirit. Gently heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture reaches at least 72°C on a food thermometer. Remove from the bain-marie and cool promptly, for example by placing the bowl in cold water.
A thin stream of coffee blends into the whisked egg mixture. Coffee cream: combine with the margarine
Beat the Palma margarine until pale and fluffy. Add the cooled egg-and-coffee mixture a spoonful at a time. The margarine and egg mixture should be at a similar temperature so the filling stays smooth.
The cooled coffee mixture is added a spoonful at a time to fluffy margarine. Assembly: fill and finish the cake
Slice the completely cooled cake into 2–3 layers and sandwich them with the coffee cream. Spread the top with the cream or a chocolate glaze. Refrigerate the assembled cake.
Three walnut sponge layers filled with light-brown coffee cream.
A few useful tips
- Peel the parchment away from the sides of the cake immediately after taking it out of the oven. The family recipe highlights this step to prevent the centre from sinking.
- Fold the walnut mixture into the egg mixture gently and thoroughly.
- Let the cake cool completely before slicing it into 2–3 layers. Finish the top with coffee cream or a chocolate glaze.
- Preparation and cooling times are estimates; the family recipe specifies approximately 60 minutes of baking.
Storage
Keep covered in the refrigerator at 4°C or below. Use within 2–3 days. Refrigerate promptly once the filling is prepared and the cake assembled.
Timing
Hands-on: 45 min · Cooking: 60 min · Resting: 120 min