Naked gingerbread cake
SERVES 12 ! PREP 1 HR PLUS CHILLING ! COOK 35 MINS ! MEDIUM
For the cake
450g plain flour
2 tsp Dr. Oetker Bicarbonate of Soda
1 ½ tsp ground ginger
2 ½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground nutmeg
225g butter, softened
150g caster sugar
125g dark brown sugar
250g treacle
4 medium eggs, beaten
2 tsp Dr. Oetker Madagascan Vanilla Paste 1 ball stem ginger in syrup, finely chopped
250ml buttermilk, at room temperature
For the icing
1 egg white handful fresh cranberries 3 tbsp caster sugar
600g Dr. Oetker Gingerbread Buttercream Style Icing decorated gingerbread biscuits rosemary sprigs
1 Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Butter and line four 20cm round cake tins with baking parchment.
2 Sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and spices into a small bowl along with a pinch of salt. Cream the butter and sugars together until soft and fluffy, then mix through the treacle. Slowly add the eggs, beating well after each addition, then add the vanilla and chopped ginger.
3 Alternate adding the flour mixture and buttermilk to the egg mixture, gently folding in each addition and taking care not to over mix.
4 Divide evenly between the prepared cake tins and bake for 30-35 mins, until a cake tester comes out clean. Allow to cool slightly before turning the cakes out onto a wire rack to cool completely. 5 To make the frosted cranberries, whisk the egg white with a fork until frothy. Dip in the cranberries, then roll in the caster sugar and transfer onto some baking parchment to set.
6 To assemble, spread a spoonful of buttercream on a cake board and place one of the cake layers on top. Brush with a little syrup from the stem ginger, then coat the top evenly with a few spoonfuls of buttercream – don’t worry about being neat at this stage. Top with another layer and repeat the process, continuing until all the layers are used up. Chill in the fridge for at least 1 hr.
7 When almost ready to serve, spread of the remaining buttercream on top of the cake, smoothing evenly. Continue down the sides with the rest of the buttercream, using a palette knife all the way round the cake to leave a light coating of buttercream that still allows the cake layers to show through.
8 Top the cake with the frosted cranberries, gingerbread biscuits and rosemary.