Golden Syrup Cake

We set out to make a ginger cake, but ran in to difficulties when we couldn't find Black Treacle, dark brown sugar or stem ginger in syrup. On top of which, we managed to buy castor sugar instead of icing sugar (surely sucre poudre sounds like powdered or icing sugar!!). 

We were determined to make a cake anyway and I invented to use what we had (a lot of Golden Syrup).

This recipe is based on a top secret family recipe called '4 to 2 to 2 to 1 cake' which has been passed mother to daughter for generations. Doug insisted we had to go metric though...

Doug says it is the best cake he has been involved in making (although he also claims it is the only one...)

It made a good birthday cake

Original 4 to 2 to 2 to 1 recipe

Ingredients

4oz Self Raising Flour

2oz Butter

2oz White Sugar

1 egg

Some milk if required

Anything else you fancy like sultanas, mixed spice, ground ginger, cherries, chocolate drops, icing etc

Salt

Method

Cream butter and sugar together 

Mix in egg (it goes lumpy) 

Mix in flour (add milk if seems too stiff). 

Put in cake tin or individual cake cases and cook at 175 C until brown on top and a skewer comes out clean

Golden Syrup 'tastic recipe

Ingredients

225g Self raising flour (we actually used plan and added 4 tsp baking powder)

112g Butter

100g Soft Brown Sugar

2 eggs

Some raisins (ginger pieces would be nice too)

4 tsp ground ginger

200g Golden Syrup (or more if you want)

Salt

For icing

Caster sugar

Juice of half a lemon

Juice and zest of half an orange

Method

Melt together syrup, butter and sugar over low heat

Put dry ingredients in a bowl and add eggs then stir in the melted mixture

Put in a cake tin (8x8 inches for flat thin cake or we used a bread tin for 500g loaves, there needs to be some headroom for the cake rising) and bake at 170 until skewer comes out clean (approx 40 - 60 mins depending on dimensions of tin) 

If the cake seems to be getting very browned put some baking foil over the top

Make drizzle or 'icing' by putting lemon and orange juice and zest in to a bowl and adding castor sugar until it is quite thick but by no means solid.

Once the cake is cooled a bit drizzle the icing over and eat warm.