Coffee and Walnut Loaf Cake

Ingredients

• 220 g soft margarine or butter (if you're using butter make sure it's soft and at room temperature)
• 220 g soft light brown sugar (you can also use dark brown or muscovado sugar)
• 4 large eggs
• 200 g self-raising flour
• 0.5 tsp baking powder
• 3 tbsp instant coffee powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 100 g chopped walnuts
• 60 g caster sugar
• 2 tbsp coffee (either espesso, fiter coffee or instant coffee made up as you would usually drink it)
• 100 g butter (soft and at room temperature)
• 200 g icing sugar
• 1/8 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tsp boiling water
• 4 tsp instant coffee powder/granules
• A little milk
• 50 g walnut halves (don't worry if some of yours are a bit broken as you'll roughly chop them)

Instructions

1. 1

   --- Make the coffee and walnut loaf cake ---

2. 2

   Pre-heat your oven to 180°C/160°C fan.

3. 3

   Line a 2lb loaf tin with baking parchment - you can also use a cake release spray or homemade cake release if you prefer.

4. 4

   Beat together your butter/margaine and soft light brown sugar until light and fluffy - if you're using an electric mixer, keep it on a low speed.

5. 5

   Add the eggs one at a time. Make sure each egg is throughly beaten into the other ingredients before adding the next one.If you find that your mixture is starting to look a little split, add a tablespoon of your flour and this should help it to come back together.

6. 6

   Add the self-raising flour, coffee powder, baking powder and salt and fold them into the other ingredients until combined.

7. 7

   Add the chopped walnuts and fold them into the cake mixture until evenly distributed throughout.

8. 8

   Add the cake mixture to the prepared loaf tin.

9. 9

   Bake your cake for 1 hour (until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean). NOTE - I use a 2lb loaf tin to make this cake, however depending on which brand you use the width and height can vary which may slightly alter your cooking time. I'd recommend checking your cake a little before the suggested time of one hour and the keep checking every few minutes until the skewer is clean).

10. 10

    --- While the cake is baking, make the coffee drizzle/syrup ---

11. 11

    Mix together the coffee and caster sugar

12. 12

    Once your cake is baked, as soon as you have removed it from the oven (while it's hot in the tin) use a skewer to poke lots of holes all over the surface of the cake going right through to the bottom.

13. 13

    Pour/brush over the coffee and sugar mixture making sure it is evenly distributed over the top of the cake.

14. 14

    Leave the cake to cool in the tin for about 10 minutes before removing it and leaving it to cool completely on a wire rack.

15. 15

    --- While the cake is cooling, make the coffee buttercream ---

16. 16

    Mix together your boiling water and instant coffee and leave to cool

17. 17

    Beat together the butter, icing sugar and vanilla extract until soft and fully combined

18. 18

    Gradually add the coffee mixture until fully combined - I recommend adding a little, beating it in thoroughly and then adding more. If you add it all in one go your buttercream may split.

19. 19

    Check ths consitency of your buttercream. If it is a soft pipeable consistency then you're good to move onto decorating your cake. If it is a little too stiff, then add some milk (no more than one teaspoon at a time), beating in each addition until you are happy with the consistency you have.

20. 20

    --- Decorate ---

21. 21

    Pipe/spread the buttercream over the top of your cake

22. 22

    Roughly chop your walnut halves and arrange them over the top of the cake