Kentish Cobnut Cake

the autumn cake of the Kent orchards: freshly gathered cobnuts, ground and chopped, folded through a moist buttery sponge and scattered over the top, eaten with a cup of tea

Origin: England

From the journey of Hazelnut.

The cobnut is Kent's own cultivated hazelnut, a short, round, sweet-kernelled variety grown in the 'plats', the traditional cobnut plantations of the Weald and the Medway valley, since the early nineteenth century, when the Lambert's Filbert (later known as the Kentish Cob) was raised and gave the county an orchard nut all its own. Cobnuts are gathered from late August, eaten first fresh and green, the milky young kernel prised from its ragged leafy husk, and later ripened and dried for keeping. They are one of the last living traditions of the English nut harvest, protected and cherished, and their season is a small celebration of the Kentish autumn. Beyond the fresh nut, the classic kitchen use is the cake: the toasted, ground cobnut folded through a plain buttery sponge gives a moist, close, fragrant crumb, and a handful of chopped nuts scattered over the top bakes to a sweet, crunchy crust. It is a homely, honest cake of the harvest table and the church fête, unfussy and deeply satisfying, and it is the surest way to carry the flavour of the fresh cobnut into the winter.

Ingredients

Cake

200 g cobnuts or hazelnuts, shelled (150 g ground, 50 g roughly chopped)
200 g unsalted butter, softened
200 g light brown sugar
3 whole eggs
150 g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp milk, if needed

Topping

1 tbsp demerara sugar, for the top

Method

Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan) and grease and line a 20 cm round cake tin. Toast all the nuts in a dry pan or a low oven until fragrant and golden, then rub off any loose skins. Grind 150 g to a coarse meal and roughly chop the remaining 50 g.
Cream the softened butter and brown sugar together until pale and fluffy, then beat in the eggs one at a time, adding a spoonful of the flour with each to stop the mixture curdling.
Fold in the remaining flour, the baking powder, and the ground toasted nuts until just combined, adding a tablespoon of milk if the batter is stiff; it should drop softly from the spoon.
Spoon the batter into the tin and level the top. Scatter over the chopped nuts and the demerara sugar. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until risen, golden, and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely. Serve in slices with a cup of tea.

Notes

Fresh green cobnuts, in season from late August to October, give the finest flavour, but any hazelnut works and dried or shop-bought nuts are perfectly good out of season. The cake takes well to additions from the same autumn hedgerow: a handful of chopped dates or a grated apple folded through keeps it even moister, and a little ground cinnamon or the grated zest of an orange flatters the nut. It can equally be baked as a traybake and cut into squares for a crowd.

The Gastrographer

Name: Kentish Cobnut Cake
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 45 min
Total time: 1 h 15 min
Yield: 10
Cuisine: England
Ingredients: 200 g cobnuts or hazelnuts, shelled (150 g ground, 50 g roughly chopped); 200 g unsalted butter, softened; 200 g light brown sugar; 3 whole eggs; 150 g self-raising flour; 1 tsp baking powder; 1 tbsp milk, if needed; 1 tbsp demerara sugar, for the top

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control