Can I Make The Coffee And Walnut Layer Cake With Decaffienated Coffee?

Our answer

Nigella's Coffee And Walnut Layer Cake (from KITCHEN) has sponge layers that are enriched with ground walnuts and sandwiched with a coffee buttercream. The recipe suggests using espresso powder but we don't see any reason why you can't use a good-quality decaffienated coffee.

We have seen decaffienated espresso powder but the availability may vary by country. If you need to use decaffienated instant coffee granules then you need to slightly increase the quantities. We suggest using 4 1/2 teaspoons of decaffienated instant coffee granules dissolved in 1 tablespoon of hot water from a just-boiled kettle (add a splash extra if needed) for the sponge. Make the sponge without the espresso powder and add the coffee mixture at the end instead of milk. For the buttercream use 1 tablespoon of instant decaffienated coffee granules instead of the espresso powder and dissolve it in the 1 tablespoon of hot water.