Can I Use Freshly Brewed Espresso For The Coffee And Walnut Layer Cake?

Our answer

Nigella's Coffee And Walnut Layer Cake (from KITCHEN) has a sponge that includes ground walnuts and is flavoured with espresso powder. The buttercream is also flavoured with espresso powder. For the sponge, the 4 teaspoons of espresso powder is usually the equivalent of 4 cups of espresso. The ingredients include 1-2 tablespoons of milk, so if you were to omit the espresso powder then you could use 2 tablespoons (30ml) of freshly brewed and cooled espresso, but the coffee flavour will not be as pronounced as this is usually the equivalent of a single espresso. Using too much liquid will make the sponge batter too thin and will give a tougher texture to the cooked sponges. Adding more flour to offset the liquid could result in a dry sponge.

For the buttercream it is also difficult to add a lot of liquid, as the buttercream will become too runny. The recipe includes 2 1/2 teaspoons espresso powder dissolved in just 1 tablespoon of liquid. If you use fresh espresso then you may be able to use 1-2 tablespoons liquid, but this will also give a milder coffee flavour. If you can't get espresso powder then you can use regular instant coffee granules. For the sponge, dissolve 4 1/2 teaspoons of instant coffee in 2 tablespoons of water from a just-boiled kettle. Cool slightly and use instead of the milk. For the buttercream, use 2 3/4 teaspoons of instant coffee granules instead of the espresso powder.