Grandma’s Walnut Sponge Cake with Sugar Glaze

Mmmhhh… walnutty fluffy melt-in-your-mouth sponge cake with a sugar glaze. This might not be the healthiest recipe on here, but it is definitely one of my favourites and very close to my heart. It has been passed on from my grandma, who used to make it all the time when we were kids. Decades old and tried, tested and loved by several generations… I don’t think you can get better proof of its deliciousness than that!

Although it may seem complicated, it isn’t at all. The sponge is made in the traditional way it has always been done in Slovakia, which is with egg whites whipped into hard peaks. Don’t run away! It isn’t as intimidating as it might sound 🙂 If you have a food processor or an electric hand mixer, you’re in luck. If you don’t, a good old-fashioned whisk will do with the additional advantage of a good arm workout 🙂

Whilst your sponge cake is in the oven, you prepare the sugar glaze and pour it on as soon as the cake comes out so it hardens as it’s cooling down. 

Also, a couple of tricks I wanted to share with you… Don’t have icing sugar? No problem, just pour your regular granulated sugar into your blender, whizz and in a matter of seconds…icing sugar!!! Same goes for the finely ground walnuts, you can buy them whole and put them into the blender, just make sure not to overprocess as they will start releasing the fats and turning into walnut butter (not a bad thing in my books, have you tried walnut butter on your oats or your morning toast with sliced banana? Heaven…)

Hope you enjoy it and continue to spread the love!

Walnut Sponge Cake with Sugar Glaze

2016-03-29 22:39:53

A walnutty fluffy melt-in-your-mouth sponge cake with a sugar glaze.

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Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

20 min

Total Time

1 hr

Prep Time

15 min

Cook Time

20 min

Total Time

1 hr

Sponge cake

1. 1 cup icing sugar
2. 1 cup butter
3. 2 cups finely ground walnuts
4. 1 1/2 cups white flour
5. 5 egg whites
6. 1 teaspoon baking powder

Sugar glaze

1. 5 egg yolks
2. 1 cup icing sugar
3. pinch of vanilla (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 180ºC.
2. Starting with the cake, in a bowl whisk the butter together with the icing sugar until soft and uniform.
3. Add the finely ground walnuts, flour and baking powder and gently fold in.
4. Separate the egg whites and the egg yolks into two bowls and in a food processor, with an electric hand mixer or a whisk, beat the egg whites until they form hard peaks (they will look like snow and when you turn your bowl upside down, they will stay in :))
5. Fold your egg whites into your butter/sugar/walnut mixture and spread into a greased baking pan.
6. Bake at 180ºC for about 15-20 min. - until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out dry and clean.
7. Whilst the cake is in the oven, prepare the sugar glaze: Beat the egg yolks with the icing sugar until they turn from yellow to almost white in colour. Add the pinch of vanilla if using.
8. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, pour the glaze on a spread evenly. Let cool and harden.

Notes

1. Don't have icing sugar? No problem, just pour your regular granulated sugar into your blender, whizz and in a matter of seconds...icing sugar!!! Same goes for the finely ground walnuts, you can buy them whole and put them into the blender, just make sure not to overprocess as they will start releasing the fats and turning into walnut butter.

By Lucia - A Teaspoon of Sunshine

A Teaspoon of Sunshine https://ateaspoonofsunshine.com/wp/