HAZELNUT CAKE SLICE

For a hazelnut cake slice without hazelnuts, this tasted amazingly hazelnut-ish. I didn’t have hazelnuts and substituted with toasted almonds, but the nutella cream somehow pulled it together. I wish we tried harder growing hazelnuts in the backyard. We ran out of time, besides it would be one more thing to leave behind. Ah the D word… downsizing. The enormous walnut tree, the various fruit trees and the fresh enjoyment they provided over the years! Leilah was only four years old when we moved to Kamloops. Back then Brocklehurst was an orchard, there were two a corn farms for walking  distance. The orchards and the farms are all gone. It's still a nice street... but our backyard is the mini oasis next to the over-sized homes with small patches of green. Never mind that, next door they put in a hideous rock lawn. Across the street there are more cars than people. Nobody grows food anymore.  

HAZELNUT CAKE SLICE

Cake:

6 egg whites

6 egg yolks

6 Tbsp sugar

2 Tbsp oil

6 Tbsp flour

1tsp baking powder

1/8 cup very finely ground hazelnuts

Cream:

3/4 cup soft unsweetened butter

1-1/2 cups icing sugar

1/4 cup nutella

1/8 cup whipping cream

• Preheat the oven to 350F.
• Fully line a 9X13 baking pan with parchment paper.
• Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form and set aside.
• Beat the egg yolks, sugar and the oil until very thick.
• Add the finely ground hazelnuts and stir to combine.
• In a separate bowl whisk the flour and the baking powder.
• Gradually add the flour mixture to the yolk mixture and beat just to combine.
• Gently fold in the egg whites.
• Transfer the cake batter to the prepared baking pan and place in the preheated oven.
• Bake until cake tester inserted the middle comes out clean.
• Let the cake cool down completely.
• Meanwhile combine butter and icing sugar and beat for 4-6 minutes until very fluffy.
• Add the nutella and the whipping cream and beat for a couple of minute.
• Spread the cream on top of the cake and pull a cake comb across.
• Cut into squares.