Wednesday 1 April 2015

Balliol Date & Walnut Cake


This cake is very much the sort of thing the Chaplain enjoys with a pot of tea. Studded with toasted walnuts and chopped Medjool dates, it's ideal with a cup of Russian Caravan.

For this cake you will need;
200g of plain flour
80g of Self Raising flour
250g of softened unsalted butter
230g of caster sugar
180g of Medjool dates
100g of walnuts
80g of ground almonds
4 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Turn the oven on to 160C.
Begin by preparing a round cake tin 15cm X 10cm, line with baking parchment.
Toast the walnuts on a baking tray in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes. Break up into small pieces.
Chop the dates and sprinkle with a tablespoon of the flour in order to separate the pieces and keep the dates from sinking to the bottom during the baking.
Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, beat in the eggs one at a time. Beat in the ground almonds, salt and vanilla before folding in the flour, the dates and walnuts. Transfer to the prepared tin and bake in the centre of the oven for an hour and fifteen minutes to an hour and a half until a wooden skewer comes out clean when pushed into the centre.



Notes:
Toasting the walnuts makes a big difference so don't omit this step if you can help it.

2 comments:

  1. The Chaplain is famous for his flapjacks, which often have a variety of ingredients in them. How come he has never served this delight to his students?

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  2. Thank you for your comment, it's true the Chaplain's flapjacks are both delicious and sustaining. I'm sure it's only a matter of time before this cake is being served at the Thursday brunch, best wishes, Tôbi.

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