Banana Ginger Cake Recipe

Now this recipe is really yummy.

Cake:

6 oz sugar, (3 oz demerera, 3 oz caster)

2 oz butter, softened

3 medium bananas, mashed
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg
7 oz flour

1½ tsp baking powder

1 oz finely chopped glace ginger

2 tbps semi skimmed milk

Topping:

6 oz icing suger
2 oz butter

½ tsp ginger powder (or to taste)
Sprinkling of nutmeg

1. Preheat the oven to 180° C/350° F (Gas Mark 4)
2. Grease an 8" square cake tin
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, mix sugar and butter together. until blended.  Add mashed banana, vanilla and egg.  Mix well.
4. Add flour, baking powder, glace ginger, to mixture.  Mix well, and add milk as needed.
5. Transfer to the cake tin.
6. Bake for around 25-35 minutes at 180° C, until a skewer into the centre comes out clean.  Leave to cool, then turn out onto a cooling rack.
7. In a small bowl cream the butter, then mix in the icing sugar and ginger.  
8. Cover the cake with the topping, leaving it rough or peaked.  Sprinkle with the nutmeg powder.  Cut into around 9 squares before serving.

Whenever I make this cake, it is well received.  I have to say, I just love ginger, so this is one of my favourites too.

Dorset Apple Cake Recipe

• 225g cooking apples
• ½ lemon, juiced
• 225g plain flour
• 1½ tsp baking powder
• 115g butter
• 165g soft brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 2-3 tbsp milk
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 180° C/350° F (Gas Mark 4)
2. Grease an 8" ring cake tin
3. Peel, core and chop the apples into small pieces, and toss in the lemon juice.  This will keep the apples fresh and stop them discolouring.
4. Sift the flour and baking powder and using an electric whisk break up the butter, until like breadcrumbs.  Alternatively rub in with your fingers.
5. Stir in just 115g of the sugar, saving the remainder for the topping.  Mix the apple and the beaten egg, and the milk, a little at a time.  Mix this to a dough.
6. Transfer to the cake tin.
7. Mix the remaining sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle this evenly over the top of the cake.
8. Bake for around 45-50 minutes, until a skewer proves the mixture is set.  Leave to stand for 10 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack.

I have made this cake in a normal round tin too, but it does require slightly longer cooking time.  I also sometimes sprinkle a little caster sugar over the top after cooling, just because it looks pretty.

The cake is beautifully moist, which my husband is most fond of.  He prefers this to the sponges that I sometimes make.