¾cupwalnut halvesToast and chop before proceeding with recipe
1cupcoarsely chopped dried pitted dates
½cuphot brewed coffeeor tea or hot water
1cupall-purpose flour
½cupwhole wheat pastry flouror all-purpose flour
½teaspoonground cinnamon
¼teaspoonsalt
1-½teaspoonsbaking powder
½cupunsalted butterroom temperature
⅔cupbrown sugarpacked
1egglarge, room temperature
½teaspoonvanilla extract
Instructions
Place a rack in the centre of your oven and preheat oven to 350ºF.
Toast the walnuts in the oven for about 10 minutes or until they are fragrant, let cool and chop coarsely.
Butter and flour a 9-inch round baking pan, tap out extra flour.
In a small bowl, pour 1/2 cup of hot coffee over the chopped dates. Add baking soda and set aside while you prepare the other ingredients.
In another bowl, whisk together both flours, cinnamon, baking powder and salt.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, combine butter and sugar and beat on medium speed until smooth, about 1 to 2 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined.
Add in dates and coffee mixture all at once, the batter will look curdled at this point but that's ok.
Beat the batter for 30 seconds and then add the flour mixture. Beat until well combined and add the chopped walnuts. Stir until walnuts are just mixed in. Do not over beat. The batter will be thick.
Evenly spread the batter into the pan and bake for approximately 25 minutes, until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and let the cake cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes.
Turn the cake out of the pan and transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Toasting the walnuts in this recipe will enhance the texture and flavour of your cake. You can toast walnuts halves in a 350ºF oven for about 8 to 10 minutes or until they are fragrant. Let cool and chop coarsely.
To freeze this Date and Walnut Cake, tightly wrap it with plastic wrap followed by aluminum foil. If there's a concern about the cake breaking in the freezer, consider placing the wrapped cake in an airtight container. The cake can be stored in the freezer for up to three months.