WALNUT PREPARATION RECIPES

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Butter 2 x 20cm springform cake tins and line with baking parchment. Set aside 2 tbsp of the coffee for the filling.
• Beat the butter, flour, sugar, baking powder, eggs, vanilla and half the remaining coffee in a large bowl with an electric whisk until lump-free. Fold in the finely chopped walnuts, then divide between the tins and roughly spread. Scatter the roughly chopped walnuts over one of the cakes. Bake the cakes for 25-30 mins until golden and risen, and a skewer poked in comes out clean. Drizzle the plain cake with the remaining coffee. Cool the cakes in the tins.
• Meanwhile, make the filling: beat together the icing sugar, cream and mascarpone, then fold in the reserved 2 tbsp coffee. Spread over the plain cake, then cover with the walnut-topped cake and dust with a little icing sugar.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Brush a 450g loaf tin with a little oil then line with baking parchment.
• Mix the flour, almonds, baking powder, sugar and dates. Beat together the mashed banana and oil, then combine it with the flour mixture. Add the soya milk to loosen the mixture, fold in the walnuts and scrape the mixture into the tin. Bake for 1 hr, covering the top if it starts to look too brown. Insert a skewer into the centre of the cake – it should come out clean. If not, return to the oven and cook for a further 10 mins. Cool for 15 mins before taking it out of the tin.