117Walnut cake

Method

Traditional spiced syrup cake. Cut into diamonds or squares, delicious served with plain Greek yoghurt or vanilla ice cream.

You will need

• 30 x 22 cm baking tin
• stand mixer or hand electric whisk
• saucepan
• silicone spatula

1. Make the syrup first by combining 400g sugar, 450ml water, and the cinnamon stick in a saucepan, bringing to a gentle boil for 6 minutes, stirring in 1 tbsp lemon juice at the end, then leaving it to cool completely. 8 min Ready when: syrup lightly thickens and turns clear
2. Preheat a conventional oven to 175°C (350°F) and lightly butter a 30 x 22 cm baking tin. 2 min · 175°C / 350°F
3. In a bowl, mix together the 250g chopped walnuts, 120g breadcrumbs, 60g flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 2 tsp ground cinnamon, and 0.5 tsp ground cloves. 3 min Ready when: dry ingredients evenly blended
4. In a clean grease-free bowl, whisk the 6 egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff peaks form. 5 min Ready when: stiff, glossy peaks hold their shape
5. In a separate large bowl, beat the 6 egg yolks with 150g caster sugar for 4 minutes until pale, thick, and creamy, then stir in 30ml brandy if using. 4 min Ready when: mixture falls in a thick ribbon
6. Alternately fold the dry walnut mixture and the whipped egg whites into the yolk mixture in three batches using a spatula, folding gently to preserve aeration. 4 min Ready when: homogeneous, airy batter without white streaks
7. Pour the batter into the prepared tin, smooth the surface gently, and bake at 175°C (350°F) for 40 to 45 minutes until deep golden brown and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. 45 min · 175°C / 350°F Ready when: skewer comes out clean and cake springs back lightly
8. Remove the cake from the oven, immediately ladle the completely cooled syrup evenly over the piping-hot cake, and leave undisturbed for at least 1 hour until fully absorbed. 60 min Ready when: cake absorbs all liquid without swimming

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Make ahead and storing

Best baked 12 to 24 hours ahead, as the flavour and texture deepen overnight.

Keep covered at cool room temperature for up to 5 days.

Substitutions

• fine semolina for fine dry breadcrumbs. Provides a slightly denser, toothsome crumb.

Common mistakes

• Pouring warm syrup over hot cake. The cake will turn soggy and disintegrate rather than retaining an airy, crumbly structure.
• Overmixing the egg whites. Deflates the incorporated air, resulting in a flat, dense slab that will not absorb syrup properly.

Regional variants

• Peloponnese version often includes a pinch of ground nutmeg and grated orange zest.
• Northern Greek version replaces half the breadcrumbs with fine semolina.

About the dish

Karydopita is one of Greece's quintessential siropiasta, or syrup-soaked tray bakes. Popular across the mainland and the islands, it relies on finely ground walnuts bound with eggs and fine breadcrumbs or semolina rather than heavy flour, creating an airy structure designed to drink up cold spiced sugar syrup. Variations abound: some home cooks enrich the batter with brandy, orange zest, or a pinch of ground clove, while northern versions often lean slightly denser with extra semolina.

Found in all of Greece. Cooked for everyday, sunday lunch, name day.

Cousins elsewhere

• Cevizli revani (Turkish). Both are semolina or crumb-based syruped sponge cakes baked with ground walnuts.
• Basbousa bil jawz (Levantine). A related family of soaked spiced nut trays widespread across the eastern Mediterranean.

Nutrition per serving (estimate)

425 kcal · protein 8.8 g · fat 18 g (saturated 3 g) · carbohydrate 60.5 g (sugars 47.2 g) · fibre 2.2 g · sodium 199 mg

An estimate (summed from ingredient estimates) that varies with the exact ingredients. It is not dietary advice.

Written fresh by Epikouria editors from general culinary tradition. Recipe by the Epikouria editors. Rooted in the classic mainland home-baking tradition using whipped egg whites for leavening..