Ingredients

The following ingredients have 16 Servings
  • 2 cups walnuts
  • 1 ½ cups sugar
  • 2 ½ cups flour
  • 3 teaspoons baking powder
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 ¼ cups whole milk
  • room temperature
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • Cooking spray
  • ¾ cup butter
  • softened
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 ½ cups butter
  • softened
  • One 8-ounce brick cream cheese
  • softened
  • 4 cups confectioner's sugar
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • Zest from 1 orange
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup walnuts
  • candied
  • store-bought or homemade
  • chopped
  • Candied ginger
  • sugared rosemary and sugared cranberries
  • for garnish

Instruction

  • Preheat oven to 350°F
  • For the cake, place the walnuts and sugar into the bowl of a food processor
  • Pulse a few times until the nuts have broken down into small pea-sized pieces
  • Set aside
  • In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg
  • Set aside
  • In a small bowl, mix together the milk, maple syrup and vanilla extract
  • Set aside
  • Spray a 13x9-inch sheet pan with cooking spray
  • Place a sheet of parchment on the bottom of the pan to cover
  • Spray the top again with cooking spray
  • Fit a stand mixer with the paddle attachment
  • Place the butter into the bowl and mix on medium speed until smooth
  • Add in the sugar-walnut mixture and combine to mix
  • Once fluffy and pale, add in the eggs one at a time
  • Once the eggs have been incorporated, add ¼ of the dry ingredients followed by ¼ of the liquid mixture
  • Repeat until all the ingredients have mixed together into a smooth batter
  • Scrape down the sides of the mixer and mix for 30 more seconds, just to ensure all the batter is well-mixed
  • Carefully pour the mixture onto the prepared sheet tray
  • Place into the oven and bake for 30 minutes
  • Remove and let cool
  • For the frosting: Place the butter and cream cheese into a stand mixer and beat with a paddle attachment until smooth
  • Working ½ cup at a time, slowly add in the confectioner's sugar until fully incorporated
  • Add in the maple syrup and beat until combined
  • Add in the orange zest, ground ginger and salt
  • Set aside
  • To build the cake: Once cool, trim the outer ¼ inch off all four sides of the cake
  • Cut the cake down the middle to make two large rectangular sheets
  • Place one sheet onto a serving tray and slather half of the frosting on top
  • Sprinkle half of the chopped candied walnuts over the frosting then lay the second half of the cake on top and rustically slather it with the rest of the frosting
  • Decorate the cake with the rest of the chopped candied walnuts and chopped ginger
  • For a more festive holiday look, top with sugar-coated rosemary and sugared cranberries!