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Jamaican Ginger Cake & Butterscotch Sauce by Ruby Bhogal

This delicious Jamaican ginger cake recipe has kindly been provided by Bake Off’s Ruby Bhogal.

Layers of deliciously sticky spiced Jamaican ginger cake sponges, sandwiched together with a delicately salted butterscotch sauce and smothered in a zesty whipped orange mascarpone cream. Perfect to whip up for a celebration or a spot of afternoon tea.

Ingredients

Sponge 
  • 260g unsalted butter, softened 
  • 210g dark brown sugar 
  • 100g golden syrup 
  • 75g black treacle 
  • 4 large eggs, room temp 
  • 260g self raising flour, sifted 
  • 2.5 tbsp ground ginger 
  • 1.5 tbsp ground cinnamon 
  • 1.5 tsp vanilla bean paste 
  • 45g soured cream 
  • 5 pieces stem ginger, finely diced plus syrup from jar 
Butterscotch Filling 
  • 150ml double cream 
  • 75g light brown sugar 
  • 42g salted butter, cubed 
  • Pinch of sea salt 
Coating 
  • 250g Mascarpone cheese 
  • 50g cream cheese 
  • 50g caster sugar 
  • 1.5 tsp vanilla bean paste 
  • Zest of 3 large oranges 
  • 400g double cream 

Method

cacen sinsir
Step 1

Preheat the oven to 150C Fan and grease and line 3 x 7inch tins.

Step 2
Mix everything

Add the softened butter, sugar, golden syrup and treacle to a stand mixer bowl and mix using the paddle attachment until light and fluffy – this should take a few minutes.

Next in goes the eggs. Add these one by one, mixing well between each addition.

Step 3
Add the spices

In a separate bowl, add the flour, cinnamon and ground ginger. Combine with a fork or balloon whisk before adding one third to the stand mixer bowl. Mix well before removing the mixer bowl.  

Step 4
Folding time

Use a spatula or large metal spoon to fold in another 1/3 of flour and vanilla bean paste before adding the remaining flour alongside the soured cream and finely diced stem ginger. Keep the folding light to make sure you keep as much air in the batter as possible  

Step 5
Get baking!

Divide the cake batter between the 3 lined tins before popping in the oven and baking for 32-35 minutes.  

Step 6
Remove them from the oven

Remove the tins from the oven before leaving to cool slightly for 5 minutes before turning the sponges out onto a wire rack. Trim off any domed tops to create a flat sponge before using a pastry brush to brush the tops of each sponge with the syrup from the stem ginger jar. Store in a container and leave to completely cool. 

Step 7
Make the butterscotch filling

Whilst the cakes are baking and cooling, make the butterscotch filling. Into a saucepan, add the cream, light brown sugar, and butter. Cook over a gentle medium heat until the sugar has dissolved, the butter has melted, and the liquid begins to bubble. Take off the heat, add a pinch of sea salt (just a tiny one!), give it a mix before transfering to a bowl to cool. Once cooled, I pop the bowl into the fridge to firm up which makes it easier when stacking the sponges. 

Step 8
Make the cream

Let’s get the cream made. Into a bowl, add the mascarpone, cream cheese, vanilla, sugar and orange zest. Mix using a whisk attachment until smooth. Pour in the double cream and mix on a slow to medium speed until the cream nearly hits stiff peaks. Transfer to a piping bag. 

Step 9
Bring it all together!

Once the sponges have cooled, construct the cake by placing one sponge onto your serving board. You can use some cream here to glue the sponge to your serving plate. Pipe an even layer of cream over the sponge before using the back of a spoon to create a dip in the middle to add a generous serving of the butterscotch filling. Repeat with the remaining sponges before covering the entire cake with the remaining cream. You can go as fancy as you like with the decoration or go for a naked finish. 

Serve alongside a cup of tea and a drizzle of any remaining butterscotch sauce. 

Ruby Bhogal

Thanks to @rubybhogal for this brilliant recipe!