Decadence like this takes time!
Ingredients
- for the ginger cake:
- 1 cooking apple (peeled and grated)
- 100 g maple syrup
- 75 g treacle
- 75 g golden syrup
- 175 g dark muscovado sugar
- 175 g butter
- 2 large eggs
- 175 g plain flour
- 175 g malted or whole meal flour
- 1 tsp mixed spice
- 2 rounds preserved ginger (finely chopped)
- 1½ teaspoons bread soda
- for the orange praline:
- 200 g caster sugar
- 2 tblsp water
- zest of 1 orange (keep the juice for the plums)
- 50 g toasted chopped almonds
- for the frosting:
- 400 g mascarpone
- 100 ml double cream
- ½ orange praline from above
- 1 vanilla pod
- for the orange liqueur roasted plums:
- 8 ripe plums (halved and stoned)
- 1 tblsp castor sugar
- juice of orange from above
- splash grand marnier or orange liqueur
- vanilla pod from above
Method
- For the Ginger Cake:
- Grease and line and baking tin with non-stick parchment paper or use individual moulds.
- Pre-set oven to 160°C.
- Place maple syrup,apple, treacle, golden syrup, butter and ginger in a large saucepan and cook on medium heat.
- Melt the butter.
- Mix the flours, spice and baking soda together.
- Add the melted butter to the syrup mixture.
- Remove from heat and mix in the dry ingredients and finally the eggs.
- Pour into the prepared tin and bake for 1 hour or until an inserted skewer comes out clean - will take less if using smaller moulds.
- Cool on a wire rack.
- For the Orange Praline:
- Place the sugar and water in a heavy based saucepan and cook over high heat. Stir a little at the beginning but leave when it starts to caramelis as the sugar will crystalise.
- When the sugar starts to colour add the orange zest and cook to a golden amber colour. Add the nuts, mix and turn onto a sheet of parchment paper.
- Cool and then chop to fine crumbs.
- For the Frosting:
- Place the mascarpone in a bowl and mix in the cream and praline.
- Split the vanilla pod and scrape in the seeds - keep the pod for the plums.
- Spread over the ginger cake and just before serving sprinkle over the remaining praline.
- For the Orange Liqueur Roasted Plums:
- lace the plums in a baking dish, flesh side up.
- Place the castor sugar, orange juice, grand marnier and vanilla pod in a small saucepan and simmer until sugar has dissolved.
- Pour over the plums and cover with parchment paper.
- Bake in a 180°C oven until soft but still retaining their shape, about 15 minutes.
- Serve a wedge of the frosted cake with plums on the side.
