* Post in association with Bacofoil
If you fancy baking up something a little bit different for Christmas this year, why not try out this delicious Gingerbread Cake with Maple Buttercream. Household favourites, Bacofoil have teamed up with Bake Off star Benjamina Ebuehi to bring you this fantastic alternative to a Christmas cake with its lightly spiced sponge, indulgent maple buttercream and semi-naked icing which is sure to wow your guests this festive season.
Essentials you’ll need
- Bacofoil Non-Stick Baking Paper
- Two Layer Cake Tins
- Saucepan
- Whisk
- Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
For the sponge you will need;
- 225g Unsalted butter
- 60g Treacle
- 200g light muscovado sugar
- 150g Golden syrup
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 50g Stem ginger, finely chopped plus syrup
- 2 Eggs
- 300ml Full fat milk
- 350g Plain flour
- 2 tsp Bicarbonate soda
- ½ tsp Baking powder
- 4 ½ tsp Ground ginger
- 3 tsp Ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp Allspice
- ½ tsp Salt
- 50ml Stem ginger syrup
- 3 tbsp Water
For the Maple Buttercream you’ll need
- 250g Unsalted Butter, softened
- 180g Icing Sugar
- 50ml Maple Syrup
Optional decorations you might consider using
- Desiccated coconut
- Gold leaf
- Sugared cranberries
Method – how to make Gingerbread Christmas Cake
Pre-heat the oven to Gas Mark 4 / 180°C
- Line two layer cake tins with Bacofoil Non-Stick Baking Paper
- Heat the butter, treacle, golden syrup and vanilla in a saucepan until melted. Whisk in the brown sugar and set aside to cool
- In a separate jug, whisk together the milk and eggs. Pour this into the butter and sugar mixture and whisk until fully combined
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, salt and spices. Make a well in the centre and pour the wet ingredients into the dry. Stir until there are no large lumps
- Divide the batter evenly between two tins and bake in a preheated oven for 40-45 minutes
- Whilst the cakes bake, heat the stem ginger syrup with 3 tbsp of water. Let it come to the boil before removing from the heat
- Once the cakes are fully cooked, poke the surface with a skewer and pour over the hot syrup allowing it to soak through. Let the cakes cool before removing them from their tins and placing on a wire rack
- When the layers are completely cool, wrap them in Bacofoil Cling Film and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to an hour to firm up. Once chilled, unwrap the cakes and use a sharp serrated knife to cut each layer into two so you have four layers in total. Set aside whilst you make the buttercream
- To make the buttercream, beat softened butter for 3-4 minutes until pale and creamy. Add in icing sugar and continue to beat for another 5-6 minutes
- Pour in the maple syrup and beat until fully incorporated
- Assemble the cake by sandwiching each layer with some buttercream. When you get to the last layer place it cut side up, giving you a completely flat top. Cover the whole cake with a thin layer of buttercream for a semi-naked effect. Swirl some extra buttercream on the top of the cake before decorating with desiccated coconut, gold leaf and sugared cranberries
How Benjamina masters it
Once the sponge is baked, wrap the layer cakes in Bacofoil Cling Film using the Bacofoil EasyCut Cling Film Dispenser and pop in the fridge for 30 minutes. This keeps makes it easier to cut the cake in two, plus keeps the surface of the sponge really smooth and stops crumbs getting in the way during icing!
Doesn’t the gingerbread cake look incredible? With it’s subtle, warm gingerbread sponge, I’m going to be giving this a go this festive season. Will you?
Disclosure: I have been compensated for hosting this recipe on behalf of Bacofoil.
plutoniumsox says
Ooh this sounds delicious! I keep thinking that Christmas cake would be nice with some ginger in it, perhaps I’ll make this instead.
Nat.x
Linda says
I have all the ingredients to make gingerbread cake but what size tins ?