Spiced rum cake
Enjoy the Caribbean flavours in this rich and moist ginger spiced rum cake. It's delicious with or without the icing, so feel free to drop that part if you don't have a particularly sweet tooth.
For this recipe you will need a 900g/2lb loaf tin.
Ingredients
For the cake
- 75²µ/2½´Ç³ú golden syrup
- 75²µ/2½´Ç³ú black treacle
- 150g/5½oz unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
- 175g/6oz soft dark brown sugar
- 3 balls stem ginger in syrup, finely chopped, plus 2 tbsp ginger syrup from the jar
- 4 tbsp dark rum
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 225g/8oz plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 4 tsp ground ginger
- 1 rounded tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- pinch salt
- grind of black pepper
- 3 free-range eggs, lightly beaten
For the rum and ginger syrup
- 75²µ/2½´Ç³ú caster sugar
- ½ lime, juice only
- 4cm/1½in piece of fresh root fresh ginger, peeled, roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp dark rum
- 1 small cinnamon stick
For the icing (optional)
- 125²µ/4½´Ç³ú icing sugar, sifted
- ½ lemon, juice only
Method
Preheat the oven to 170C/150C Fan/Gas 3. Grease a 900g/2lb loaf tin and line the base and ends with a strip of buttered baking paper.
Measure the golden syrup and treacle into a deep saucepan, add the butter and brown sugar and heat gently, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Add the chopped stem ginger, ginger syrup, rum and 100ml/3½fl oz freshly boiled water, remove from the heat and mix to combine. Stir in the bicarbonate of soda (the mixture will foam up dramatically) and leave to cool for 10–15 minutes.
Meanwhile, sift the flour, baking powder, spices, salt and pepper into a large mixing bowl.
Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients, add the eggs and mix using a balloon whisk. Add the syrup mixture in three batches, whisking well after each addition. Whisk until the mixture is silky smooth and then pour into the prepared tin.
Tap the tin on the work surface to release any large air bubbles, then bake for 45–50 minutes or until well risen and a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
Meanwhile, prepare the rum and ginger syrup. Place all of the ingredients plus 25ml/1fl oz water into a small pan over a medium heat. Bring to the boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar, and simmer for 2–3 minutes until slightly thickened. Remove from the heat and leave to cool so the flavours to infuse.
Remove the cake from the oven and leave in the tin for 3–4 minutes. Strain the ginger and rum syrup into a jug. Prick the cake all over with a skewer and then slowly drizzle the syrup over the top. Leave in the tin until completely cold. You can serve it as it is, or finish with the icing as below.
If making the icing, mix the icing sugar with enough lemon juice to make a thick, smooth and just-pourable icing. Remove the cake from the tin and spoon the glaze over the top. Leave to set for at least 1 hour before serving.
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