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At the famed Badrutt’s Palace Hotel in St Moritz, Switzerland, I come to sample their divine Engadin nut cake, a traditional favourite for afteoon tea in Le Grand Hall with its high rubber V ring Manufacturers ceilings and marbled floors.Refresh in ice-cold water.Be careful as the caramel may splutter. The crunchiness of the local walnuts, combined with honey and cream is a winning combination," he adds. Generations of local confectioners have continued to refine this specialty filled with cream, caramel and chunky walnuts.

The Engadin walnut tart is the ultimate guilty pleasure. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Alteatively, grease and line the base of a cake pan.Press the pastry into the coers and allow for a small overlap at the top edge.Serve with steamed rice and a spicy Kashmiri mutton curry.Where do they grow?In my quest for the perfect walnut, I trek up to the Southe Swiss Alps where walnuts grow in plenty. Add the flour and mix until a dough is formed.Brush the folded pastry lightly with water and place on the pre-rolled top, pressing lightly on the edges to seal.Swirl the pan occasionally from side to side, and brush down pan sides with a wet pastry.Grind the walnuts, onions, mint and chillies to a paste."Engadin Nut Cake For the Shortcrust pastry:Ingredients400 gm plain flour160 gm caster sugar280 gm soft butter1 eggPinch of salt MethodTo make the shortcrust pastry, take a mixing bowl, slowly mix the salt, sugar, butter and egg until well incorporated with a paddle. Bake for 50-60 minutes, or until light golden.Retu the filling mixture to low heat and cook until the liquid is slightly reduced, and colour changes to mid-brown (3-4 minutes).Reduce heat and cook for 5 minutes.Remove from heat and add the honey.Your shortcrust pastry is ready.Pre-heat oven to 180ºC.Remove from the heat and add coarsely chopped walnuts and cream, stir to combine. Because they exist in such large quantities in the Engadin region, locals have put them to good use and a world renowned cake owes its lineage to the walnut.Allow to cool completely before spreading evenly over the pastry-lined ring or pan.Engadin confectioners, who worked in Italy, France and America in the 18th Century, are said to have brought the recipe home, perfecting it here.Considered to be one of the most effective superfoods, walnuts are packed with almost every conceivable vitamin and mineral, not to mention protein, healthy fats, and antioxidants.Remove from the ring or pan before completely cool and place on a wire rack. 

Brush gently with egg wash. Prick the base lightly with a fork and store in the fridge until required. This will be the top of the tart.Go round and press the edges with a fork and lightly prick all over. Fold the excess pastry over onto the filling.Recipe courtesy: Chef and chocolatier Varun Inamdar. Burzul is a medium-sized variety with a dark, thick outer shell and dull white keel.Roll out the remaining two-thirds of the pastry on a lightly floured piece of baking paper to 30 cm diameter. TThese single-seeded stone fruits can be your go-to snack and are equally versatile in puddings and sweets.Mix well and allow it to sit for 30 minutes before serving for flavours to blend well.Drain and discard the water. Kagzi has a thin outer shell with a white and tender keel, best for exports.Closer home, the walnuts from Kashmir are known for their superior quality and delicate taste. Executive chef Michel Jose of Badrutts Palace tells me what makes it so special.Recipe courtesy: Executive chef, Michel Jose — Badrutts Palace, St Moritz, SwitzerlandKashmiri Doon Chetin  Ingredients½ cup walnuts1 cup yoghurt whisked1 large onion, roughly chopped2 green chillies½ tsp black cuminA pinch of asafoetidaSalt to taste5-6 sprigs fresh mint leavesMethodHeat one cup of water in a pan, add walnuts and bring to a boil. l Transfer to the pastry ring or cake pan by gently wrapping around a rolling pin, then unrolling to lay evenly on top.

Today, Engadine walnut cake is one of the gastronomic icons of Graubünden, a Swiss culinary classic that is exported all over the world.Grease and place a 22-cm, round, 3-cm high pastry ring on an oven tray lined with baking paper. Leave to rest in the fridge for at least six hours, or until dough is cold and firm. For the caramel-nut filling:Ingredients360 gm sugar120 ml water120 gm cream60 gm honey400 gm walnutsMethodTo make the caramel-nut filling, place the sugar and water in a medium-sized stainless steel saucepan and heat without stirring. Store in the fridge until needed. It is usually acid washed to make it look like Kagzi. Wonth is a hard nut to crack due to its thick outer shell and small keel, best used for extracting oil. "It is the filling that makes this cake irresistible, thanks to the walnuts.Stir in yoghurt, red chilli powder, asafoetida and salt.Transfer into a bowl. Chef Varun Inamdar informs, "There are three varieties, known as Wonth, Kagazi and Burzul.Roll out one-third of the dough on a lightly floured piece of baking paper with a lightly floured rolling pin to the size of the tart r.