I was pleased as punch when this Coffee and Walnut Cake came out as well as it did on my first attempt, needless to say I’ve made it many, many times since and it’s proven to be a very easy coffee cake recipe. I always thought I wasn’t a fan of Coffee & Walnut Cake because I’m not a fan of the coffee chocolates you get in selection boxes – but I do like a good latte. Plus I had family members who loved coffee cake so to please the majority, bake I did, and how glad I am of it!
How wrong could I be, this is definitely on my top 10 list now (don’t ask me what the other 9 are…I’d probably have to use my fingers and toes to count! I’ve added a super tip at the bottom of this recipe, to be fair, this is an excellent tip to use in all your cake baking if you wish to achieve a light airy sponge.
As you’ll notice throughout my blog, I refer to not cutting corners and ensuring you prep baking sheets/tins/trays adequately. I’m the first person to hold my hand up when it comes to cutting corners to save time but as my journey progresses I realise that this is false economy.
Gluten Free baking demands respect so chill, prep and enjoy baking … lets face it, if your cakes end up like this beauty, it is so worth it!
Did you know… interesting facts about coffee!
Did you know that coffee could actually be good for you? I kid you not apparently there are potential health benefits associated with drinking coffee include protecting against type 2 diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, liver disease, liver cancer, and promoting a healthy heart [Medical News Today]
Did you know that coffee beans are the pits of the cherry-like berries found on the flowering shrubs, but we call them “beans” because of the resemblance to legumes.
Did you know that Espresso means “pressed out” in Italian. This refers to the way espresso is made — forcing boiling water through pressed coffee grounds. And although espresso has more caffeine per volume than coffee, it would take three shots to equal the amount in a regular cup of joe. I was recently introduced to Espresso in France, i’d ordered a small black coffee in french, clearly poor french and got this instead, it was however delicious and I’ve been drinking Espresso’s ever since!
Other recipes that are similar to my Coffee and Walnut Cake
So you like coffee do you? Silly question really, so here are some other coffee inspired bakes to whet your whistle starting with my Mocha and Walnut Slice. Admittedly not your average bake and with a few ‘not the norm’ ingredients but this is a special treat so why not! Then you have my go-to recipe when I have friends over, this Mocha Cake is super simple, vegan and gluten free so nobody need miss out at cake and coffee time.
Other bakes that I urge you to look up are this Coffee Intense Mocha Roulade by The Gluten Free Alchemist, hold onto your socks when you click through, it’s beautifully decadent. And finally if you’d love a dessert of the coffee kind than how about this Latté Panna Cotta by the Intolerant Gourmand, I know I’ll be trying these for sure.
Coffee and Walnut Cake, a firm favourite in the traditional bakes list surely. This is a simple to make bake which is gluten free but can also be made dairy free too by simply substituting the butter. Perfect for a family gathering, birthday cake or teatime treat.
- 65 g Walnut pieces chopped to your liking
- 225 g Gluten Free Self Raising Flour
- 225 g Butter
- 225 g Caster Sugar
- 4 Eggs
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 2 tsp strong black coffee either make an espresso or add hot water to granules
- 150 g Unsalted Butter
- 300 g Icing Sugar
- 4 tsp strong black coffee
- 8-10 Walnut halves to decorate
- Cream the butter, and sugar together until paler in colour and light in texture.
- Add the eggs and coffee and beat mixture well
- Sift in the flour and baking powder and add the chopped walnuts, fold gently to combine - this will prevent knocking out to much air.
- Add the mixture evenly between two well prepared cake tins (grease and dust with flour to enable to cake to rise evenly).
- Pop into the oven on 190C / 375F / Gas 5 for 25 mins.
- Remove when golden in colour and a light bounce to the touch.
- Allow the sponges to cool completely before adding the buttercream.
- Simply cream the ingredients together to make a smooth spreadable buttercream.
- Add half the mixture to the bottom cake sponge, place the top sponge onto and repeat.
- Decorate with the walnut halves.
- Invite friends and stick the kettle on!
Top Tip:
If you want to achieve the lightest sponge possible, and have the time and patience, try sieving the flour 3-4 times before adding it to the mixture. This process aerates the flour and encourages a lighter sponge with a better rise.
I really love to read your comments and feedback and will always comment back. Do drop a line in the comment section if you like and don’t forget to rate the recipe too. If you try my Coffee and Walnut Cake recipe, I would love to see your creations, take a picture and do tag me using the hashtag #Glutarama on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Subscribe to my email list so that you get the recipe straight in your mailbox.
disclaimer: I’ve started using affiliate codes on my website again (needs must). If you click on any of the links in the post and make a purchase my family will benefit from a small % of that purchase at no extra cost to you.
I’m Rebecca, full time mum, social media editor and blogger. On my site you will find my free from recipes, reviews and the odd drama.
Hi Rebecca, so glad I’ve found your blog. I’ve recently discovered I have an intolerance to gluten which in itself doesn’t bother me but I do love to bake and was overwhelmed with mixes of flours most recipes need you to make up that was until I found you! ? I absolutely love coffee and walnut cake so I’m gonna try this, I was just wondering if you could make them in to cupcakes and if so what would you have the temperature at and for how long…any ideas? Thanks Lisa x
Hello Lisa and welcome, glad you found us. Cupcakes sounds like an amazing idea, must give it a try, at a guess I’d say 10mins on Gas 5 (190C) to bake, I reckon this would make 12 large cupcakes easily and the icing would pipe them just fine. Would love to see your creations good luck and keep me posted ? ?
This cake looks amazing! Yum.
Thankyou, it total was. Always a winner in this family ?
Thank you so much for sharing this with us at Allergy Free Thursdays! It looks delicious!
What a beauty! It looks absolutely gorgeous. I’d love a slice or 5 with a nice latte. x
Thank you Mel, all those years and I was missing out…making up for it now though!!
This looks delicious and full of flavour!
OMG that really does look gorgeous!
Thank you Jacqueline, it does rather hit the spot!
You should be a part of a contest for one of the finest sites on the internet.
I’m going to highly recommend this web site!
YES PLEASE! I LOVE coffee and walnut cake. It’s one of my absolute favourites. :-D Your coffee story made me laugh – if you just order ‘un café’ in France – that is what you get! If you want what we’d think of as a small black coffee, you have to order ‘un café allongé’ – which is my personal favourite. It’s like an espresso but with a little bit more water – but not as much as an Americano. It’s something we don’t really do here, but I wish we did as I love it. I make them at home with my nespresso machine though :-D Thanks for linking up to #CookBlogShare. Eb x