Gingerbread and Spiced Rum Layer Cake | Bake Off Bake Along

After so many busy weekends recently, I thought I'd be able to get a chance to just chill this weekend and slowly get through all my things to do. 

Ever the optimist, I tried to squeeze a lot of things in on Saturday and started by getting up reasonably earlier. But my time management needs work because this cake was baked at around 8pm, not the afternoon like planned. 

Christmas has definitely come early with this bake and I am here for it. 

I am so ready to decorate trees dance around to Christmas music and fill the house with all things spiced and ginger, and buy all the candles and blankets and essentially just get all cosy and ready to hibernate for winter. 

How's everyone enjoying Bake Off so far this year? I'm still undecided on how I feel some weeks. Kim-Joy is definitely my current front runner for the winner and her turtle cake has been my favourite so far. 

I wasn't massively won over by the idea of Spice Week, considering that most weeks the bakers use spices. That being said, I bloody love gingerbread and cinnamon so was ready to take on the gingerbread layer cake combo of dreams. 

The rum and ginger cake combo was a suggestion from my flatmate and it worked out better than I could ever have imagined. This recipe is quickly going to become my go-to ginger cake recipe from here on out. It's perfectly spiced and treacled to the max. The cake has stayed so wonderful soft and (dare I say it) moist, thanks to the rum sugar syrup. 

Sad to say I am not currently tucking into a slice right now (not quite ready for my mouth to hum with the sugar at 11pm). But I am excited to get stuck into a slice with some hot custard tomorrow evening. Because if that doesn't say winter-ready, I don't know what does. 

p.s am not quite ready for pastry week, even if I do eat a lot of pastries... 

Gingerbread and Spiced Rum Layer Cake

Ingredients:

for the cake:
200g butter

250g soft dark brown sugar

200g treacle (or molasses)

200ml whole milk

3 medium eggs

250 self raising flour 

1 ½ tsp of ginger
1 tsp of cinnamon
½ tsp of nutmeg

for the rum syrup:
50ml spiced rum (I used Captain Morgans, delish)
50g light brown sugar

for the buttercream:
200g unsalted butter, room temperature
500g-600g icing sugar
1-2 tbsp caramel sauce

ginger nut biscuits (optional for decoration)
2 tbsp caramel sauce (optional for decoration)

Directions: 

1. First for the cake, preheat the oven to gas mark 4/180C/350F and grease and line 3 20cm cake tins. 
2. Place the butter, sugar and treacle in a pan and melt together over a mid-heat until the sugar is dissolved and everything has mixed together into a smooth syrup-like consistency. 
3. Whisk the whole milk into the saucepan until combined, then slowly add the eggs, whisking as you go. 
4. In a large bowl, sift the flour and spices together. Then pour the treacle mixture into the bowl and mix until it comes together in a smooth batter. 
5. Pour the cake mixture between the tins and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Check after 20 minutes, and remove from the oven when cooked or a skewer comes out clean. Allow for the cakes to cool in tin for 5 minutes before removing to cool fully on wire racks. 
6. To make the rum syrup, place the rum and sugar into a saucepan and heat together over a low heat, stirring continuously until the sugar has dissolved and a thick syrup is produced. Then removed from heat and pour into a jug to cool. 
7. To make the buttercream, beat the butter in a large bowl for 5-10 minutes or until pale and fluffy. Sift the icing sugar gradually into the bowl and slowly mix after each addition. Lastly, add the caramel to the mixture and beat well for a further 5 minutes, to allow butttercream to become smooth and glossy. If the mixture is too thin, add more icing sugar. If it is too thick, ad a teaspoon more caramel or a splash of milk. 
8. For assembly, I emptied the rum syrup into a squeezy bottle and sprayed it over the cake layers evenly, ensuring that the whole cake is covered. The allow to sit for a moment so the syrup can soak through the layers. 
9. Spread buttercream evenly between layers and apply to the outside of the cake. Then drizzle caramel down the side and press crushed gingernut biscuits into the side of the cake and on top. Serve as is, with ice cream, custard or with a rum and coke! (...or all of the above)