This super simple cake certainly does pack a perfect ginger punch. Whilst its such a great standalone recipe without embellishment such as coffee frosting, its a great 'dress up' cake for any occasion also. In this instance I added a little frosting and chopped fudge chunks for a family birthday. Whether you prefer frosting or not, this cake will develop a delicious sticky top a day or two after baking. Step out the way shop bought Jamaican ginger cake, this is my new favourite. Next time I'm planning to bake it in a square tin and serve warm after a Sunday dinner with lashings of custard or ice cream.
S T I C K Y G I N G E R C A K E W I T H C O F F E E F R O S T I N G
(Recipe adapted from Jamie Oliver)
Sticky ginger cake:
375g unsalted butter, softened plus a little extra to grease the cake tin
330g soft light brown sugar
225g black treacle
75g golden syrup
6 eggs
375g self raising flour
4 tbsp ground ginger
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp ground nutmeg
5 tbsp sour cream (roughly a 150ml tub)
8 pieces jarred stem ginger, chopped plus 6 tbsp syrup, separated
- Heat the oven to 180 degrees, and grease and line the bottom of a 2cm round cake tin.
- Cream together the butter, sugar, treacle and golden syrup until light and fluffy.
- Slowly add the eggs, beating well after each addition.
- Gently fold in the flour, spices, sour cream and chopped stem ginger until just incorporated.
- Pour into the prepared cake tin, smooth over the top and bake for 40-45 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and leave the cake to cool fully in the tin. Brush the top with the stem ginger syrup whilst still warm to allow to soak through the cake.
Coffee buttercream frosting:
75g unsalted butter, softened
250g icing sugar, sifted
25ml buttermilk or just regular milk
15ml strong espresso coffee
- Cream the butter and half of the icing sugar until light and fluffy on a low speed. I like to add the icing sugar in intervals in attempt to cover as little of myself in clouds of sugar as possible. Add the buttermilk and coffee and mix once again on a low speed until fully incorporated.
To assemble:
Once the cake has fully cooled, upturn from the cake tin onto a plate. Smooth over the buttercream with a large palette knife. To decorate I added some chopped shop bought fudge and some gold leaf, but of course this is completely optional. Crushed ginger biscuits would also work well.
