my brothers favourite cake is coffee and walnut cake, so I thought I would experiment with it a bit and add some cocoa powder and cacao nibs and I covered it in mascarpone frosting and drizzled over some miso buttermilk caramel.  I decorated it with some cinnamon walnut brittle from that was sent to me by craved. I think baking cakes has to be my favourite thing to cook, whether its a layer cake like this or a simple pound cake. I’m not a huge fan of buttercream though so I tend to use cream and mascarpone. I find you you don’t need to add as much sugar to sweeten it.

recipe

• 300g butter
• 200g light brown sugar
• 120g caster sugar
• 6 eggs
• 6 tbsp. buttermilk
• 330g plain flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 2 tbsp. cocoa powder
• 2 tbap cacao nibs
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1 tbsp. instant coffee mixed with 2 tbsp. boiling water

preheat the oven to 160c

grease and line 4 15cm tins

in a stand mixer cream together the butter and sugars, then add the eggs one at a time, scraping the bowl with a spatula after each one. this add the buttermilk and coffee. in a big bowl sift together the flour, baking powder and soda and cocoa powder and a pinch of salt and fold into the wet ingredients then add the cacao nibs and chop the walnuts into small bits and fold them in too. spread between the four tins and level about then bake for about 25 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean after it is inserted into the centre.

for the frosting

• 300ml double cream
• 250g mascarpone
• 6 tbsp. icing sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla bean extract

add all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and whip until thick, then add some between each layer and on top and scrape around sides.

caramel

(I made this the night before)

makes one big jar

• 2 X 500ml buttermilk
• 1 tbsp. white miso paste
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 325g granulated sugar

add one of the 500ml of buttermilk in one big pan and the other 500ml in other, in the big pan add the sugar to the buttermilk and stir constantly until it turns golden brown and thick (approx. 10 to 15 minutes), meanwhile heat the other pan of buttermilk and add the vanilla miso and bicarbonate of soda and bring to the boil and mix so that the miso paste is combined, then pour in to the big pan (careful it will bubble up) then whisk again until it turns thick again (about 10 minutes) or until it reaches 110c

let cool

drizzle over cake and decorate with some walnuts and cacao nibs