This honey and stem ginger cake is a lovely light sponge. It's dressed with a light whipped mascarpone, roasted figs and pistachios. We've used honey in this recipe as it lends itself well to the bake. It adds a sweetness without the need for refined sugar and helps retain a really nice moisture to the sponge. The topping for the cake is a great idea for a dessert. If you'd like to serve this after a family meal, head here for the recipe.
17 ingredients9 steps
Vegetarian
Method
Step 1
Preheat the oven to 180ºC/160ºC fan. Line a 2lb loaf tin with baking parchment. Place the honey, butter, and sugar into a saucepan and heat gently until the butter melts and sugar dissolves. Once melted bring to the boil and allow to simmer gently for 1 minute before removing and allowing to cool a little.
Step 2
In a separate bowl sift the flour and ground ginger together, finely grate the stem ginger and stir in.
Step 3
Once the honey mix has cooled to just being ‘warm’ add the eggs and whisk to combine before adding to the dry ingredients bowl. Mix well until all ingredients are combined and you have a smooth batter.
Step 4
Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for approx. 45 minutes or until well risen and a cake tester in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack.
Step 5
Warm 2 Tbsp of the honey in a small pan and brush over the warm cake. You can repeat this with the remaining Tbsp of honey once the cake is cooled for an extra sticky glaze.
Step 6
For the mascarpone cream: Put the cream and mascarpone into a bowl together and whip until it forms soft peaks. Add the remaining ingredients and fold in. Continue to whip slightly more if you need the cream to be firmer to layer between a cake. Use immediately or keep chilled until you are ready.
Step 7
For the figs: Pre-heat the oven to 180°C fan. Place the figs on a baking tray with a lip, to collect any juices. Drizzle the honey over the figs and place in the oven for 8-10 minutes until the figs have softened and the juice thickened, baste using the cooking juices halfway through the cook time. Remove and allow to cool.
Step 8
For the pistachios: Pre-heat the oven to 180°C. In a bowl combine the pistachios with the honey and mix together until well coated. Place on a lined baking tray in a single layer and bake for 5-7 minutes until the honey glaze looks sticky at the edges and the nuts just getting a hint of color. Leave to cool before chopping.
Step 9
To assemble place the cake on a serving plate, spoon the mascarpone cream on top and top with the figs and pistachios. Drizzle with a final tablespoon of honey if desired.
Ingredients
MetricImperial
For the Sponge
160gHoney
150gSalted butter (cubed)
60gBillington's dark muscovado sugar
200gAllinson's Self Raising Flour
1.5 tspGround ginger
50gStem ginger in syrup (drained weight)
2Eggs
For the Glaze
3 tbspHoney
For the Mascarpone Whipped Cream
150gMascarpone cheese
150mlDouble cream
4 tbspHoney
1 tspNielsen-Massey Vanilla Bean Paste
1Lemon zest (of 1 lemon)
For the Roasted Figs
4Ripe figs
40gHoney
For the Pistachios
30gPistachios
20gHoney
Utensils
2lb loaf tin
4 Baker Ratings
This is such a gem of a bake. I doubled the icing ingredients and added a centre later and also added some of the stem ginger syrup to the honey for the glaze.
This was scoffed and loved by all who ate it!
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1 baker loved this!
Complete fail ... so disappointed.... 😭🙈I cannot see what I did wrong.
