One of our firm favourite bakes in this house (in fact, I'm making my 2nd of the week later on today) Jamaican Ginger Cake. Yes, we do still eat the factory made variety (They last about 10 minutes in this house!) but nothing beats homemade.
This is a great recipe for when you are running short of eggs as it only uses 1. Over the years I've mixed and matched with the ingredients in this - If you are running short of treacle, bung a bit more syrup in. It also works if you don't have any stem ginger (I have forgotten to include it on several occasions) but it does make it wonderfully sticky.
What makes it a Jamaican Ginger Cake
There's various theories on this. Some people believe that a Jamaican Ginger Cake should have a splash (or more) of rum. Some other believe it is the addition of copious amounts of dark treacle that give that rich flavour, dark colour and sticky texture. I tend to think it is the texture that is close and dense but not stodgy that remind us of Jamaican Ginger Cake. If you know of any other theories, please feel free to add!
Jamaican Ginger Cake
Print recipe
| Serves | 8+ |
| Prep time | 15 minutes |
| Cook time | 1 hour |
| Total time | 1 hour, 15 minutes |
| Meal type | Dessert, Snack |
| Misc | Child Friendly, Freezable, Pre-preparable, Serve Cold |
| Occasion | Casual Party |
Ingredients
- 80g Butter
- 85ml Golden Syrup
- 60ml Treacle
- 85g Dark Brown Sugar
- 200g Plain Flour
- ¾ teaspoons Bicarb of Soda
- 3 tablespoons Ground Ginger
- 1 teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon Mixed Spice
- 1 Medium Egg
- 125ml Milk
Optional
- 50g Stem Ginger (Chopped Finely with a drizzle of the syrup from the jar)
Directions
| 1. | |
| Preheat the oven to 170C and line a loaf tin with either baking parchment or a loaf liner | |
| 2. | |
 In a large pan over a gently heat, melt the butter, sugar, syrup and treacle . Stir continuously. TIP: Spray a cup with spray oil to help get the treacle and syrup to fall out easily | |
| 3. | |
 As soon as mixed and melted, remove from the heat and allow to cool for 3-5 minutes | |
| 4. | |
 Meanwhile, in a large bowl add the flour, bicarb and dried spices. Mix together. | |
| 5. | |
| After the butter/sugar mixture has cooled slightly add the beaten egg & milk (and chopped stem ginger if you are using) and mix together thoroughly | |
| 6. | |
 Add the wet mixture to the flour and mix until comes together. Should be a very wet mixture when poured into the tin. | |
| 7. | |
| Bake in the oven for 50-60 minutes. You may need to pop a tin foil lid over around half way through. | |
| 8. | |
| Remove from the oven - A skewer should be clean when the middle of the cake is tested. Eat as soon as cool enough to cut - Will firm up slightly so best to wait at least a couple of hours. | |
For more Ginger Cake Recipes you might like:
Tropical Ginger Traybake - A lighter ginger bake. Great for serving at summer parties.
Gingerbread Roulade with Lemon Cream - Oh wow, this is one for special occasion but is actually super quick and easy to make.
Sticky Gingercake - We make this when we are out travelling. Oaty and tasty.
Family Ginger Traybake - Exactly what it says, suitable for all the family. Will disappear quickly so make 2!
Bake of the Week
Its fair to say that the hot weather last week made it unbearable to be in the kitchen on some days. Our entries for #BakeoftheWeek are down on usual but this is typical for summer and hot weather. Thanks though to the 3 entries that we do have - I've decided to feature all 3 rather than just 1 this week:
Jenny from Mummy Mishaps shared a great birthday Celebration Cake using new pink Kit Kats. My kids are now addicted to these!
These Ice Cream Cone Cupcakes from The Baking Explorer are perfect for summer birthday parties
Thumbprint Cookies take me right back to my childhood and these from the Gluten Free Alchemist are so cute.
Our linky is now open for more entries - We will be sharing across social media new entries and old. Hopefully now the weather is slightly cooler, people will be more tempted back into their kitchens. We cannot live off Magnums forever (or can we?)
Please link to my self (https://casacostello.com) and Jenny (https://mummymishaps.co.uk) in your post. Old posts welcome if they have never been part of #BakeoftheWeek before. Please also add the badge:
<div align="center"><a href="https://casacostello.com" title="Casa Costello" target="_blank"><img src="https://casacostello.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Bake-of-the-week.jpg" alt="Casa Costello" style="border:none;" /></a></div>
Where do we share #BakeoftheWeek entries?
- G+
- Yummly
- We are occasionally sharing on Mix & Facebook too as well.
- We comment on every post (Most weeks you will get 2 comments from us)
- We include a pic and a link to each entry in the following week's roundup
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What fabulous Ginger recipes on your blog. The roulade sounds incredible!! Such clever recipes even if everyone was mostly on the beach last week. Thanks for hosting ladies.
Oh I love Jamaican Ginger Cake and this looks so sticky and delicious!
I've never had homemade Jamaican Ginger Cake but the shop bought one I have had is pretty good, so I can imagine yours is even better! I've missed out on linking up to a couple of Bakes of the week so looking forward to linking up to the next one!x
Hi, this cake looks delicious - eggs aren't listed in the ingredients - how many should I use, please?
Argh! How have I missed that? Its only 1 egg - I'll amend now & email you to make sure you get the message. Thanks for letting me know x
Thanks a million for that - I plan to bake your yummy ginger cake tomorrow!
Ooh hope it was a success! xx
Hi this is my second time making your ginger cake it is delicious it's a favourite with the family. Thanks so much for sharing x
Made this cake today, omg! it's delicious, a definite make again.
Hi, I'm going to give this recipe a try, can you tell me what size tin you used please?
Ooh one of my favourites! I used a standard loaf tin - I think they are referred to as 2lb loaf tins? Hope you like the recipe. Stay well x
This looks a delight and I plan to make for my brother who LOVES a Jamaican ginger cake. Seeing as I have a spiced rum in the cupboard would it be an idea to add a splash or am I best to leave out?
Ooh I bet Spiced Rum would be a wonderful addition as a special treat!
Three tablespoons of ginger, ie.nine teaspoons ? I don’t want to put in three times too much!
Yes! This is a fiery recipe but it can more than handle that amount of ginger. Enjoy.
Can I make this as a traybake
Hi Doreen,
Yes certainly - it will work as a traybake. Just make sure your pan is not too shallow - You may have to adjust the cooking time to make sure the edges don't cook too quickly.
Enjoy!
What are the mixed spices? I would love to try this.
Mixed Spice is sold in the UK as a complete dried spice powder. It contains a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and allspice. I believe a good substitute is pumpkin spice.
OMGoodness I'm a Brit living abroad and I can't get Jamaican Ginger cake here so when I get the hankering for it I have to make it. I've tried a few different recipes but so far none have hit the spot. Hopefully your recipe will! [fingers crossed!] I don't have any stem ginger, should I use some fresh ginger in it's place? If so, how much? Thanks!
Hi, thanks so much for your comment. Best of luck making the cake. I have referred to good old google - You can substitute stem ginger with 1/8 teaspoon of ground ginger for every tablespoon of stem ginger which is probably a lot easier than trying to substitute it with fresh ginger.