Date Walnut Coffee Cake

This Date Walnut Coffee Cake is a delightful treat, made with coffee-infused soaked dates. Topped off with a luscious Coffee Buttercream, it pairs beautifully with hot coffee. Perfect for the fall and winter months, this cake is a must-have for the holiday season!

This recipe was first published on January 10, 2019, and has been modified and updated.

Date Walnut Coffee Cake

Date Walnut Coffee Cake is a rich and flavorful dessert that combines the natural sweetness of dates with walnuts. The dates are soaked in coffee, infusing the cake with a deep, aromatic flavor, while the toasted walnuts add texture and crunch. Topped with a smooth and creamy coffee buttercream, this cake is indulgent yet perfectly balanced. Its a warm and cozy treat, especially during the cooler fall and winter months. Enjoy with a hot cup of coffee or as a festive holiday dessert, this cake is sure to impress!

If you love dates, you’ll love these Healthy Date Walnut Cacao Bites and Healthy Almond Date Ladoo.

Ingredients & Substitutions

• Dates – You need to use 2 cups pitted dates. Chop them up and soak them in hot coffee for at least 30 minutes.
• Hot Coffee – You’ll need hot coffee to soak the dates and also a few tablespoons for the coffee buttercream.
• Ground Spices – You’ll need nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom. Cardamom is optional, however the rest are necessary.
• Walnuts – Dry roast the walnuts, and once cooled, chop them up. You’ll need walnuts for the cake and to garnish. Feel free to substitute pecans for walnuts.
• Brown Sugar – You may use light or brown sugar.
• Instant Coffee – Use any brand of instant coffee, you’ll need a little bit for the coffee buttercream.

*See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.*

How to make Date Walnut Coffee Cake

STEP 1 – Preheat Oven & Prep

1. Preheat Oven to 350 degrees. Soak Dates. Soak 2 cups of chopped dates in 1 1/4 cups of hot coffee (Image 1).
2. Dry Roast Walnuts. Dry roast walnuts for 3-5 minutes until you can smell the aroma. Set aside to cool, then chop walnuts. You’ll need most of it for the cake and some for garnish (Image 2).

STEP 2 – Prepare Batter

3. Dry Ingredients. Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl (Image 3).
4. Stir. Set aside (Image 4).

5. Wet Ingredients. Combine room temperature butter and brown sugar in a large bowl, and use an electric mixer to mix until well combined (Image 5)
6. Add an egg and vanilla extract (Image 6).
7. Mix the batter well until light and creamy for about 3-4 minutes (Image 7).
8. The batter should be a light mocha color (Image 8).

9. Alternate Between Dry & Soaked Dates. Add 1/3 of the dry ingredients (Image 9).
10. Mix until well incorporated, but do not over mix (Image 10).
11. Add half of the soaked dates with the coffee. Mix well until well combined (Image 11).
12. Repeat. Repeat this process 2 more times alternating between the dry ingredients and soaked dates, and ending with the dry ingredients. Remember not to over mix. This is how your batter should look (Image 12).

13. Add walnuts (Image 13).
14. Fold them into the batter, do not over mix (Image 14).

STEP 3 – Bake

15. Transfer the batter into a greased loaf tray and bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes (Image 15).
16. Use a toothpick or knife to determine if your cake is baked. I baked mine for 60 minutes. Set aside to cool. In the meantime, prepare the coffee buttercream (Image 16).

STEP 4 – Make Coffee Buttercream

17. In a large mixing bowl, combine the powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons room temperature unsalted, butter, instant coffee, vanilla extract, and half of the hot coffee (Image 17).
18. Mix until well combined (Image 18).
19. Add the remaining hot coffee and mix well (Image 19).
20. The end result should be creamy coffee buttercream (Image 20).

21. Frost Cake. Once the cake has cooled, drizzle the coffee buttercream all over the cake (Image 21).
22. Garnish with walnuts, slice, and enjoy with hot coffee (Image 22).