Ginger and Lemon Cake

Ginger Cake filled with Lemon Curd

Ingredients 

Ginger cake

• 250g Light Brown Sugar (can use dark brown sugar if you prefer)
• 250g Butter
• 320g Plain Flour
• 250ml Milk
• 4 Eggs
• 50g Root Ginger *
• 4 tsp Ground Ginger
• 2 tsp Cinnamon
• 4 tsp Baking powder
• 1 tsp Vanilla extract
• A pinch of Salt

* if you'd like a heavier/hotter ginger taste, you could add an additonal 25g of stem ginger or crystalised ginger for an additional kick.

Lemon Curd

• 50g Caster Sugar
• 50g Butter
• 1 unwaxed lemon (zest & juice)
• 2 eggs

Grease a loaf tin and place a sheet greaseproof paper (baking parchment) on the base.

Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC (Gas Mark 4).

Mix together the flour, spices (Ginger & Cinnamon), Baking powder and Salt.

Cream the butter and sugar together, add the vanilla extract, beat in the 4 eggs, grate in the fresh root ginger. Then gradually add the flour mixture and milk a little at a time whilst continuing to mix. Once you get a smooth batter, pour into the loaf/cake tin. Tap the tin on the work surface a few times to bring any air bubbles up to the surface.

Depending on the heat efficiency of your oven, it can take between 45mins and 60mins. Use a skewer or a sharp knife to pierce through the cake to check if any mix stays on the blade, if it’s still wet then bake for longer. If you find the top of the cake is getting too brown, you can turn the heat down and leave to bake for longer.

Once baked, remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for 30mins or more. Turn out the cake onto a cooling rack and allow to cool for a further 30mins. Cut across the cake horizontally and separate the two layers.

Lemon Curd

Place a heat proof bowl over a saucepan of water (careful the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl). Bring the water up to the boil and then turn down to a simmer.

Add the butter, sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest and whisk together until smooth and sugar begins to melt.
Lightly beat 1 whole egg and an additional egg yolk together in a cup. Add to the bowl over the pan and continue to stir until the curd thickens (should take approx 10mins).

Spread a layer of lemon curd onto the base layer of the cake, place on the top layer.

Dust with icing sugar and it’s ready to serve.

I'd imagine it would be tasty served with some warm vanilla custard. But it’s also fine just on its own with a cuppa!