Nuss Sahne Torte (German hazelnut cake)

Ingredients

THE CAKE

• 1 egg
• 25g sugar
• Drop of rum (optional)
• 15g softened butter
• Pinch salt
• 15g ground hazelnuts
• 15g self raising flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder

THE CREAM

• 200g cream cheese
• 3 tbsp thick plain yogurt
• 2 tbsp syrup or sweetener of choice
• 2 tbsp ground hazelnuts

TO TOP

• Whole hazelnuts
• Chopped hazelnuts
• Chocolate flakes

Method

1. Roast 100g hazelnuts if you haven’t already got roasted ones - roast for 12 mins in an oven at 180, then leave to cool completely (then blitz half in a blender for a couple of seconds until they’re ground and leave the others whole)
2. Preheat the oven to 170°C and line a small cake tin
3. Whisk the egg and the sugar until the mixture has thickened - this takes 2-3 mins
4. Add your softened butter, or hazelnut butter if you have any and mix through well
5. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, ground hazelnuts a pinch of salt and baking powder
6. Add the dry ingredients to the egg mix and mix through well
7. Pour the batter into the lined cake tin and bake for about 20 mins until risen and golden brown
8. Meanwhile, mix the cream cheese, yogurt and syrup until smooth. Put half into a piping bag with a nozzle, then add the ground hazelnuts to the other half of the mix and mix through well
9. Leave the cake to cool, then slice in half and put a layer of the cream cheese and hazelnut mix on the bottom half, place the other half on top, then cover the whole cake with the remaining cream cheese
10. Crush some hazelnuts, either in a plastic bag with a rolling pin, or with a pestle and mortar, then press around the outside
11. Pipe some small blobs around the circumference, then add some more crushed hazelnuts to the centre
12. Leave to cool in the fridge for 30 mins, then serve.