Every month, I write, develop and test 21 seasonal recipes for LandScape magazine, a countryside-themed magazine with articles on food and food production, crafting and gardening, as its home economist.
Featuring in the January issue, this marmalade and ginger cake was a triumph when I tested it, with lots of my guinea pigs coming back for more. A January tonic, the cake packs some punch with bitter and full flavours dominating and is great with a dollop of sour cream. You can easily make this vegan by replacing the butter with the same amount of rapeseed oil and the egg with 60ml of chickpea brine from a tin of chickpeas, and then serve it with a thick coconut yogurt (my favourite is CoYo). And it is the season to get making that marmalade yourself with Seville oranges – give it a go; it makes the cake all that more fresh.
Marmalade & ginger cake
120g orange marmalade, plus 2 tbsp for topping
40g root ginger, peeled and grated
60g unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
150g caster sugar
1 egg
150ml boiling water plus 40ml boiling water for topping
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
200g self-raising flour, sifted
Preheat the oven to 190°C/gas mark 5 and grease and line a 20cm round cake tin. For the remainder of the recipe go to www.landscapemagazine.co.uk/recipes-2/2017/12/14/marmalade-and-ginger-cake
