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Walnut Mocha Torte, close up of half the cake on a white platter at a 45 degree angle.
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5 from 1 vote

Walnut Mocha Torte (Gluten-free)

Walnut Mocha Torte with whipped cream and mocha frosting is a feast for the eyes and the palette! Great for entertaining.
Course Afternoon tea, Dessert
Cuisine British
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 55 minutes
Servings 10 slices
Author Camilla Hawkins

Equipment

  • 1 mixing bowl medium sized
  • 1 Electric hand whisk
  • 1 Digital scale
  • 1 rubber spatula
  • 2 20 cm Springform baking tins
  • 2 Sheets PFAS free baking parchment
  • 1 Glass bowl medium sized
  • 1 Wooden spoon
  • 1 Stainless steel spatula

Ingredients

  • 3 Large eggs
  • 225 g Castor sugar
  • 135 g Ground walnuts
  • 400 ml Whipping cream (save some for decoration)

Mocha Frosting

  • 4 tbsp Milk
  • 50 g Unsalted butter
  • 50 g Cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp Instant coffee diluted in 1 tsp of hot water
  • 200 g Icing Sugar

Decoration

  • Walnut halves

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 200°C.
  • Grease and line two 20cm sandwich tins with baking paper.
  • Whisk the eggs and sugar together until light and fluffy.
  • Fold in the ground walnuts.
  • Divide the mixture equally between the two tins (weighing is a good idea).
  • Bake for 24 minutes until golden.
  • Allow to cool in the tins before putting on cooling rack and removing paper. The top will be like meringue and the base will be more nutty and chewy. (Don't worry about cracking, this is quite normal).
  • Whip the cream until forms soft peaks (a hand whisk is best to avoid over whipping).
  • Sandwich the two layers of torte together with the crumbly meringue like sides innermost (facing each other), leaving enough cream for decoration.
  • Put milk and butter in a saucepan and heat until boiling then tip in the cocoa and simmer for 30 seconds.
  • Add the dissolved coffee and beat in the icing sugar gradually. If it goes grainy just add another tsp of hot water and beat well.
  • Spread the frosting on top of the cake, spreading out with a palette knife.
  • Pipe on the rest of the cream and decorate with walnut halves.
  • Chill until ready to serve.

Notes

Don't worry if the top layer of each cake breaks when you come to remove them from the tins. They will be like brittle meringue, so they break easily. No one will know when you've sandwiched the layers together with cream and topped them with mocha frosting.