Spiced Sweet Potato and Walnut Cake

 This is not just a cake inspired by a recipe cut out of an old Waitrose Magazine, but one with a few twists and one of two special associations.

Mr S does not believe that it is a cake if it contains vegetables and always mentions this if he has to have something like carrot or courgette cake when we are out.  That is an old record for sure...I think it was the photography that got me looking twice at this recipe.  The crumbling rich brown cake full of walnuts.

On one of our last Sunday morning WI rides, I happen to stop for what I thought were mini potatoes, that given the speed I was cycling can be excused.  I was delighted that there were the gardener's walnuts, for sure, small much smaller than the ones you buy in shops, but with the outline of the tree clearly visible above the high stone wall, it was evident that these were zero miles walnuts.  I  have only recently just cracked the last lot, and this cake therefore celebrates those special things you can buy along English country lanes from wayside produce stalls.

The second special touch for this cake was provided by my last pot of Fresh Ewe's Cheese from Homewood Artisan Cheese makers, that I had bought from the Wells Food Festival last autumn.  It has been turned over several times when rummaging round the freezer and also needed using up.

I followed the recipe for Spiced Sweet potato and walnut cake except for the following substitutions:  I used half white spelt, again using up the bottom of a packet and made it up to 135g with wholemeal spelt flour, and cooked the batter in two smaller tins.  The sweet potato came from the fridge and had been roasted the previous night ready for a salad with a few fennel seeds, which were in the final sweet potato puree.

For the topping I used 150g Fresh Ewes Cheese, 50g thick sheep's yogurt, two rounded desert spoons icing sugar, and of course the lime zest.  I had a little taste of course, and shall confidently use this again.