Chocolate, hazelnut and cinnamon krantz loaf

MAKES ONE CAKE (1KG LOAF TIN)

sift into the sugar mixture and fold in. Add the yogurt and the saffron milk to the mixture and fold again until incorporated. Pour the batter into the prepared pans, dividing it evenly, and bake in the preheated oven for 12 to 14 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Saffron is quite drying, so take care not to over-bake.

Leave the layers to cool in the pans while you make the buttercream. Add a few tablespoons of boiling water to the marzipan and mix it with a fork to melt it slightly (this avoids lumps of marzipan in the buttercream).

Using an electric beater, in a bowl mix the sugar and butter on high speed and add the marzipan. You may need to add a bit of milk, too. Beat and allow to fluff up for several minutes on high speed. If you feel it is too sweet, you can add a few drops of lemon juice or similar.

Remove the cakes from the pans and peel off the paper. Place the first layer of cake on the serving plate, then add a layer of the buttercream. Repeat until you have used all three layers.

You can leave the cake naked and just decorate the top with the remaining buttercream or you can use the buttercream to give a light coating all around the sides, as shown below, for a very frosty-looking cake. I like to decorate it with frosted redcurrants.