Going Nuts Over Coffee Chocolate Cake

This is the first time, Beautiful People, that I am answering a challenge published by a blogger. I am only doing it to support a delightful and talented Marla of https://marladragon.wordpress.com/2023/01/23/challenge-for-january-23-2023 who has just come up with her first challenge. Here it is:

Consider this challenge a “Wordle” lite.

• Coffee
• Transmittal
• Fax or Phone (use either or both)
• Sticky tab
• Draft or Organize (use either or both)
• Dish
• Scan
• Spread Sheet
• Scale
• Rubber

Pick at least three bullets from the list of ten and write a poem, a story, sketch picture, show us pictures you’ve taken. You can use any variation on the word and have a blast! Ping back so that I can read everyone’s contributions!!!

Dear Marla, here is a coffee cake, organized on a pretty dish, on a background of my husband’s boutique cigar box (in case you don’t know, Senor Solomon is his brand, the first and only in the world Kosher cigars).

The Book of Prophet Yirmiyahu (Jeremiah) mentions a Babylonian chief officer, one Nebo-Sarsekim who served as king Nebuchadnezzar’s right hand during the siege of Jerusalem (Ch.39).  In 2007, historian M. Jursa found proof of this, including the officer’s name, on a small clay tablet, while working at the British Museum (http://www.britishmuseum.org).  To make a long and tragic story short, Nebuhadnezzar won and, in addition to the usual spoils of war, took with him to Babylon the entire Jewish intellectual elite. Here is the Hebrew Slaves Chorus from Verdi’s famous opera Nabucco:

In reality, though, they weren’t treated very badly. Certainly, “by the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept” and lamented the very fact of exile, but altogether Nebuhadnezzar had not wanted cheap labor; he neatly executed a total brain drain.  It was difficult, though, to get used to a strange language, outlandish customs, and weird food. Babylonians loved nuts of all kinds and were especially fond of walnuts. The arrogant king at some point went nuts himself, went down on all four, and for seven years ate grass together with farm animals.

Don’t worry about him, though; having learned his lesson, the king was restored to the throne and went right on gobbling nuts.  We are going to follow his example while trying to stay relatively sane, which is also not an easy task in today’s world.

This will be a moist, nutty, coffee-and-chocolate two-layer cake with creamy cashew frosting. For the cake itself, you need whole wheat or gluten free flour, eggs or substitute, Smart Balance, brown sugar, roughly chopped walnuts – that king Nebuchadnezzar was not a very refined individual; in fact, he was quite rough! – liquid espresso, and unsweetened cocoa powder.

You can bake it as one cake and then slice it, but I found it easier to bake two even layers to begin with. Meanwhile, we can add more nuts by making frosting.

To make creamy frosting, you have to soak raw cashews in water for at least an hour. Drain them and blitz them in a food processor or blender with some almond milk, agave, lemon juice, a touch of vanilla, and, of course, more espresso.

Are you counting? We have three different kind of nuts already – really going nuts! This is totally yummy on its own, as a pudding, but spread on this Coffee Chocolate Cake – heavenly!

Decorated with more walnuts and coffee beans, it will grace your table and make you look like royalty – just make sure not to go nuts!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup Smart Balance or any butter substitute, room temperature
• 2 eggs or substitute
• 1/3 cup roughly chopped walnuts
• 1 tablespoon liquid espresso
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

For icing:

• 1 cup raw cashews
• 1/2 cup almond milk
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon liquid espresso
• 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tablespoon agave
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

PROCEDURE

• Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly mist 2 baking pans with oil.
• Mix dry ingredients, including walnuts, put aside. Whisk wet ingredients together, add dry ingredients, mix thoroughly.
• Bake for 25 – 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out dry. Remove from oven, completely cool in pans.
• Pre-soak cashews in water for 1 hour. Drain, place in food processor, add the rest of ingredients, pulse until creamy consistency, occasionally scraping sides.
• Spread frosting between layers and on top, dust with cocoa powder, garnish with walnut halves and coffee beans.

Enjoy!