Espresso & Honey Roasted Walnut with Sea Salt Cake

Brown butter icing

50g butter

50g custard powder

50g double cream

100g butter

200g icing sugar

Ingredients

250g Butter

125g Caster sugar

125g Soft brown sugar

4 Free range eggs

250g Self raising flour

3 tsp Ground coffee for 2 espresso

150g Walnuts

1 tsp Olive oil

2 tbsp Honey

2 tsp Sea salt

Here’s how

Beat together the butter and both sugars in an electric mixer, its really important to blend these ingredients together, then and only then can you add the eggs one at a time making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next.

Once you have the butter, sugar and eggs mixed together turn off the mixer and use a spoon to finish off.

Stir in the espresso coffee, then add the flour.

Fold together gently as you don’t want to over mix as this will develop gluten and cause your cake to be dense and chewy, instead of light and delicate.

Divide the cake batter between 2 20cm cake sandwich tins.

Bake in a pre heated oven 170c for 20-25 minutes or until firm to the touch and the top springs back when you gently press down.

To roast the walnut nuts, place them into a pan with a splash of olive oil and cook on a medium heat for 8 minutes stirring making sure they do not burning.

Drizzle the honey over the nuts while still hot and stir together, the honey will melt and coat the nuts quickly, then season with the salt.

Honey and salt bring out the nut flavours and characteristics of the walnuts.

Leave the nut to cool before using, they also make a great snack.

For the icing

Melt 100g of butter in a pan, just as it starts to foam add the milk powder and continue to cook until a dark golden colour almost an amber colour.

Add the cream and bring up to the boil while wishing together.

Beat the remaining butter and icing sugar together with an electric whisk for 3-4 minutes.

When the butter and milk powder mixer has cooled pour in to the butter icing and mix on a slow speed.

Now that you have brown butter icing you can ice the cake and top with honey and sea salt roasted walnuts.

Go to www.cookserveenjoy.com for all my equipment that I use in my kitchen