Honey Ginger + Pistachio Syrup Cake

Lightly spiced cake studded with pistachios and drenched in a honey and ginger syrup.

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 7 tablespoons (100 grams) softened butter
• 1/4 cup (60 grams) firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (125 grams) honey
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup (200 grams) full fat greek yogurt or sour cream
• 1 and 3/4 cups plus 1 tablespoon (275 grams) all purpose flour
• 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 3 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1/2 cup (75 grams) roughly chopped pistachios
• 1/3 cup ( 60 grams) chopped crystallized ginger

For the syrup:

• 1/4 cup (80 grams) honey
• 1/4 cup (50 grams) sugar
• 1/4 cup (60 mls) water
• 1 to 2 teaspoons of ground ginger

– If using metric cups, reduce volume measures by 1 tablespoon for every cup of dry or liquid ingredients – 

Equipment:

• Stand mixer or hand held electric mixer
• 5 by 9 inch loaf pan lined with baking paper
• small saucepan
• fine skewer and pastry brush

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 180C  (350F). Line a 5 by 9 inch loaf pan with baking paper and set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. I am creaming longer and longer these days and it does make a difference so be patient – let it go for at least 3 minutes in the stand mixer. Add the honey and beat well until incorporated and fluffy.

Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each – about a minute each time. It will start to break up at this point because there is a lot more egg than butter but don’t worry. Add the yogurt and beat again – it should start to come back together.

Sift the flour, baking soda and spices together and fold into the wet ingredients. Add the  chopped fruit and nuts and gently fold in until just distributed.

Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and level the top.

Bake for 55 to 65 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. The crust will darken a lot because of the honey and this is totally fine. If you are concerned about an overly dark crust you can cover the top with foil for the last 20 minutes of baking.

While the cake is baking, prepare the syrup. Put all the syrup ingredients into a small saucepan and melt together. Allow it to just start boiling then remove from the heat. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven use a skewer to poke holes all over the top. Don’t take it out of the pan just yet.

Gently drizzle or brush a couple of tablespoons of the syrup onto the cake and let it soak in. I prefer to ‘mop’ the syrup onto this type of cake using a pastry brush because it helps it to soak in evenly. If I drizzle it tends to run down the sides. For the next 15 minutes or so make a cup of tea and check your emails and every couple of minutes add a bit more syrup to the cake until it’s all used up.

Remove the cake from the pan and set on a wire rack to finish cooling. Top the loaf with a little more chopped pistachios and ginger before serving.

You can serve it any time – it’s fabulous while it’s still warm. Sweeten a little Greek yogurt with honey to have on the side.

Cook’s Notes:

• If you don’t like pistachios, replace with an equal volume of toasted unsalted almonds
• If you are a spice lover, try adding a teaspoon of cinnamon and a pinch of cloves for extra warmth
• Use your favourite most flavoursome honey to get the best flavour from this cake

 – This cake will keep well for up to 3 days in an airtight container, though the syrup will completely absorb after the first day  – 

Adapted from Scandinavian Baking.

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