seconds if using a food mixer – until coarse and crumbly.
To make the cake batter, first cream the butter until soft in a separate large bowl or in the food mixer. Pour in the sugar and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and gradually mix in the eggs. Add the sour cream, then (with the mixer on a low speed, if you’re using it) sift in the remaining ingredients, and fold in to combine.
Tip the batter into the prepared tin and smooth the surface with a spatula or the back of a spoon. Sprinkle over the crumb mixture, making sure it covers the batter completely.
Bake on the lower shelf in the oven for 45–55 minutes or until golden brown on top and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Check the cake after 30 minutes and if the top is already a rich golden brown, cover the tin with foil (to prevent the cake from burning) and continue to cook for the remaining time.
Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool in the tin completely. Then lift the cake out using the baking parchment, peel away the paper and cut into squares to serve.
The St Clement’s combination of oranges and lemons is a real classic, named of course after the bells in the famous nursery rhyme. This drizzle cake is different from other syrup cakes: rather than dissolving the sugar in a hot syrup first, it’s simply mixed with the citrus juices before being drizzled over the cake. The undissolved sugar crystals are essential in this recipe for their slight crunch.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Baking time: 45 minutes
Ready in: 1 hour 30 minutes
Serves: 6–10
175g (6oz) butter, softened
175g (6oz) caster sugar
2 eggs
Juice and finely grated zest of 1 lemon
Juice and finely grated zest of 1 orange
50ml (2fl oz) milk
175g (6oz) self-raising flour, sifted
100g (3½oz) granulated sugar
900g (2lb) loaf tin
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), Gas mark 4, and line the base and sides of the loaf tin with baking parchment, with the paper coming above the sides of the tin to enable the cake to be lifted out easily.
Cream the butter until soft in a large bowl or in an electric food mixer. Add the caster sugar and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy.
Whisk the eggs together in a small bowl for a few seconds or just until mixed, then gradually add them to the creamed butter mixture, beating all the time. Beat in the lemon and orange zest, followed by the milk.
Fold in the flour until combined, then tip the mixture into the prepared loaf tin. Bake for about 45 minutes or until nice and golden on top and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
While the cake is cooking, pour the lemon and orange juice into a bowl and mix in the granulated sugar.
When the cake comes out of the oven, prick it with a skewer a few times, then drizzle the sugary juices all over the cake, allowing them to soak in. Leave the cake to cool completely in the tin, then carefully lift it out with the lining paper. Peel away the baking parchment and leave on a wire rack to finish cooling down.
Place on a plate or board and cut into slices to serve.
Dark treacly gingerbread squares
The strong, almost bitter, flavour of treacle goes so well with the equally strong taste of ginger. The bitterness is mellowed with the brown sugar, while the treacle, along with the milk, makes this cake lovely and moist. The finished squares will keep for up to 10 days if stored in an airtight container.
Prep time: 15 minutes
Baking time: 20–25 minutes
Ready in: 1 hour
Makes: 16 large or 25 smaller squares
75g (3oz) butter, plus extra for greasing
100g (3½oz) soft dark brown sugar
175g (6oz) black treacle
150ml (5fl oz) milk
1 egg
225g (8oz) plain flour
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp salt
20cm (8in) square cake tin with 5cm (2in) sides
Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F), Gas mark 4. If the cake tin has a removable base, butter the sides and line the base with a square of baking parchment, otherwise line the base and sides of the tin.
Place the butter, brown sugar and treacle in a saucepan over a medium heat. Stir together until melted and combined, then remove from the heat and whisk in the milk, followed by the egg. Set aside while you prepare the other ingredients.
Sift the flour, ground ginger, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a large bowl. Make a well in the centre, then pour in the wet ingredients and mix together thoroughly, beating the mixture with a wooden spoon just until it comes together, and making sure there are no lumps of flour.
Tip the batter into the tin and bake for 20–25 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then carefully remove the cake and leave on a wire rack to cool down fully before placing on a chopping board and cutting into either 16 large squares or 25 smaller ones.
Dark treacly gingerbread loaf
Line the base and sides of a 900g (2lb) loaf tin with baking parchment before tipping in the cake mixture. Baked like this, the cake will take about an hour to cook. Once cooled, cut into slices and spread with butter to serve.
Angel food cake is a classic American dessert, especially popular in the South. Its name derives from it being almost magically light, making it seem like the ‘food of the angels’. Once the cake is made, you can cover it with rose-water or lavender icing, if you wish. Iced or plain, this cake is delicious served with summer berries and whipped cream, to which you could add a dash of rose or orange-blossom water or a few drops of lavender essence for a refreshing, floral note.
Prep time: 20 minutes (excluding the icing)
Baking time: 20–28 minutes
Ready in: 1 hour 15 minutes
Serves: 6–8
Butter, for greasing
125g (4½oz) plain flour, plus extra for dusting
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