This article was written for Annabel & Grace, which is now part of Rest Less.
Although I love to cook, I very rarely make cakes for obvious reasons! However, last week a girlfriend came to stay for a few days and, at the same time, I received a Delia Online email with a recipe for “damp” gingerbread.
The title intrigued me and, with the outside temperature being below zero, I thought I would have a go at making it, particularly as I had all the ingredients in the storecupboard. I have to say, it was easy peasy, simply delicious and scarily moreish. My girlfriend arrived to the wonderful smell of baking and a hostess trying not to appear rather pleased with herself. Good old Delia, she never fails!
Damp Gingerbread
Ingredients
- 350g golden syrup
- 125g block butter
- 250g plain flour, sifted
- ½ level teaspoon salt
- 1¾ level teaspoons bicarbonate of soda
- 1 level tablespoon ground ginger
- ½ level teaspoon mixed spice
- 1 large egg
- 275ml milk
How to prepare
You will need an oblong tin 20cm by 26cm, 4cm deep (or similar), well buttered and lined with baking paper. Pre-heat your oven to 180°C, gas mark 4
First weigh out the syrup into a small saucepan. It helps to place the opened tin in a pan of barely simmering water for 5 minutes to make it easier to pour.
Then weigh a saucepan on the scales, and weigh the syrup into it. Then add the butter to the saucepan and melt the two together over a gentle heat. Meanwhile measure the dry ingredients into a bowl, then gradually pour in the syrup mixture, mixing thoroughly. Now beat the egg and milk together in a separate basin, then add that bit by bit, again mixing very thoroughly.
The cake batter will seem very liquid at this stage but that’s quite normal so don’t worry. Just pour it into the prepared tin and bake near the centre of the oven for about 50 minutes or until the centre is springy. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire tray to cool. When it’s cold, cut it into squares and store in an airtight tin.
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