Black Cake
Makes one cake
Ingredients for the Macerated Fruits:
1 pound of prunes
1 pound of raisins
1 pound of currants
¼ pound of mixed peels
½ pound of cherries
¼ pound of chopped almonds
1 bottle of cherry brandy
¼ bottle of rum (or more to taste)
1-2 tablespoons of Angostura bitters
2 tablespoons of brandy (optional)
Chop all of the fruits and mix with remaining ingredients. Soak for at least one day before using, Store in an airtight container in a cool, dark place. This mixture can be soaked for years without spoiling.
Ingredients for the Burnt Sugar (Browning):
1 pound of brown sugar
½ cup of hot water (or red wine)
Burn your brown sugar over medium high heat, until the colour turns dark. Watch closely and keep stirring so that the sugar does not stick or harden. When the sugar is burnt, take it off the heat and add the water or wine and stir quickly. You should have a deeply caramelised syrup. Store in a jar at room temperature.
Ingredients for the Cake:
1 pound of butter
1 pound of sugar
8 large eggs
1 teaspoon of lemon essence
2 teaspoons of lime rind
2 teaspoons of almond essence
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 pound of flour
4 teaspoons of baking powder
2 teaspoons of mixed spice
½ teaspoon of grated nutmeg
Browning, to taste
Macerated fruits
Rum, for soaking
Cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, then the flavourings. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and spices. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients gradually. Add in the macerated fruits, and the browning to your liking. Ideally enough browning should be added to make the cake batter quite dark (it should look like chocolate). Split the batter between two 9-inch cake pans. Bake at 275°F for about 3 hours. Soak the cake in rum. Serve in small pieces.