Vasiliki’s Karydopita – Greek Walnut and Syrup Cake Recipe
The @grecianpurveyor William, has generously shared his mum, Vasiliki’s Karydopita – Vasiliki’s Walnut Cake – a recipe that comes to you directly from Kalpaki, Ioannina, Epirus Greece.
This is William’s favourite Greek sweet. In fact, whenever William returns to his family in Greece, a feast of his favourite foods await – Kouneli Stifado (rabbit stew) and this Karydopita. This karydopita has a very generous amount of walnuts and cinnamon in it, giving it a satisfying nuttiness and spiciness.
Breadcrumbs are also used to add body to the cake. The breadcrumbs are mixed into the batter gradually until the batter achieves a texture that is thick, yet still a little loose – see last image.
A little patience also needs to be exercised to enjoy this cake – the karydopita needs to cool completely before the hot syrup is added. Then you add as much syrup as you like – less if you prefer the karydopita sweet and drier, more if you prefer it syrupy!
Thank you to Vasiliki and Georgia Dachri for making, documenting, photographing and sharing this much-loved family recipe of Karydopita! 💖💖💖
Photos by Georgia Dachri, recipe by Vasiliki Dachri
Ingredients
- For the karydopita you will need…
- 400 g walnuts, finely chopped
- 30 g cinnamon
- 2 tbsp Ladi Biosas organic extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
- 8 70g eggs yolks and whites separated
- 400 g sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 g baking powder
- 350 g fine breadcrumbs, added gradually (see instructions)
- 60 g semolina - use only if the karydopita batter is loose
- For the syrup you will need…
- 400 g sugar
- 400 ml water
- 2 tbsp Stayia Farm – Organic Wild Forest Honey
Method
- Preparing the karydopita
- In a medium bowl, stir the walnuts and cinnamon together, before adding the EVOO and mixing through
- Whisk yolks with the sugar till pale and thick
- Whisk the egg whites separately till soft peaks form
- Gently fold the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture in batches
- Gently fold in the walnut mixture, vanilla extract and baking powder
- Add the breadcrumbs and gently combine – add enough breadcrumbs to form a thick batter, that is on the looser side
- If you have added all of the breadcrumbs and the batter is still very loose, than add enough semolina to tighten it a bit
- Lightly baste a 30cm diameter pan with EVOO
- Pour the batter into the pan and gently shake it flat
- Bake at 180oC conventional for about 35-45 minutes, or until a test skewer comes out clean
- Allow the karydopita to cool completely
- Preparing the syrup
- Add the sugar and water to a small pot and bring to the boil
- Take the pot off heat and stirin the honey
- Ladle hot syrup slowly and evenly over the karydopita – the amount of syrup you add will depend on personal preference
- Serving the karydopita
- Serve the karydopita with spoon sweets, such as sour cherry, quince or wild fig Kali Orexi!