I had a bit of Nutella sitting in my cupboard that I was trying to think of something to use it up in, and I needed a dessert for tonight. I like wacky cake, which is quick and easy to make, so I thought I would try to change it up a bit and experiment with making a wacky cake with coffee and hazelnuts, and using the Nutella in the frosting. This came to just under 4 points, including frosting, when cut into 16 servings. If cut into 20, 3 points each.
Wacky Cake (aka Crazy Cake, Cockeyed cake, Depression Cake) with Coffee and Hazelnuts
- 1 3/4 cups flour
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice
5 tablespoons oil
1 cup strong coffee - 1/3 cup chopped hazelnuts
You can stir it all up in the pan (an 8 x 8) if you like. I prefer to make it in a bowl and use a wire whisk.
Preheat the oven to 350F. Sift the dry ingredients together (or just combine them very well), and add the hazelnuts. Make three troughs in the dry ingredients, and put the vanilla in one, the vinegar in another and the oil in the third. Pour the coffee over top, and stir it all together. Bake for 25-35 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean).
Frosting:
- 1 cup icing sugar
- 2 tablespoons Nutella
- 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1-2 tablespoons milk  (or water) to thin it enough to spread
Combine the first three ingredients. Slowly add enough liquid to make it spreadable.
I was pleased with the way it turned out. If I make this variation again, I might swirl some Nutella through the cake batter, and frost it with a coffee icing.
(Interesting fact that I learned today…Ferrero, which produces Nutella, uses 25{b5e9da418c41db5965ba6ae41e0262802c569d7c3fb12d2aa915c31c71481173} of the world hazelnut market)
Any ideas or suggestions are greatly appreciated:)