Sticky gingerbread recipe

This sticky gingerbread cake is dense and delicious - perfect for a slice at teatime on a cold winter day.

The recipe uses three different kinds of ginger to create the spicy flavour - dried, crystallised, and the ginger-flavoured syrup from the crystallised ginger jar. Together they make a strong, fiery flavour, with the added depth and sweet richness of the dark treacle. You can serve slices of this cake warm, straight from the oven. Try it with a dollop of extra thick double cream, or make it even more decadent by stirring a teaspoon of icing sugar and a teaspoon of whisky in to make whisky cream. Otherwise leave it to cool as normal and enjoy with a big mug of tea or cocoa.

Ingredients

• 240g plain flour
• 180g dark brown sugar
• 2tsp baking powder
• 2tsp ground ginger
• 1tsp cinnamon
• 2 eggs
• 5 balls crystalised ginger in syrup
• 100ml whisky (see tip)
• 120ml orange juice
• 220ml unflavoured oil (sunflower, vegetable)
• 2tbsp syrup from the ginger
• 1tbsp treacle

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 160ºC/325ºF/Gas Mark 3. Grease and line a deep 9 inch cake tin.
2. Put the flour, baking powder, sugar, cinnamon and ground ginger into a large mixing bowl.
3. Beat the eggs in a small bowl. Finely chop the crystallised ginger.
4. Add beaten eggs, whiskey, orange juice, oil, ginger syrup and treacle to the flour mix, and beat well until fully combined. Stir in the chopped ginger.
5. Spoon into the prepared tin and bake for 35-45mins until slightly risen and dark golden brown. The cake will feel springy when it's cooked. If in doubt, stick a skewer in the middle – when the cake is cooked the skewer will have a few crumbs stuck to it, but no raw batter.
6. Leave to cool in the tin, then double wrap in tin foil or store in an air tight container for up to a week.

Top tips for making this sticky gingerbread recipe

If you don't want to use whisky, replace with black coffee.

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