A humble cake. That is all I ask. Nothing fancy or frivolous, no buttercream or swirls of Italian meringue. Just a thin slice of simple cake to eat with a tiny cup of coffee. A hint of spice would be nice. A little cinnamon or the scent of vanilla, the warmth of nutmeg or a whisper of ginger. There could be nuts – toasted please – or perhaps a few nuggets of dark and slightly bitter chocolate.
What I would welcome most are a few pieces of apple, pear or quince among the soft crumb. The fruit should be poached first, so it glows with sugar syrup and melts under the fork.
When I am going to put fruit in a cake I usually cook more than I need – often in a light, barely sweetened syrup of sugar and lemon – so I can offer some nestled next to the cake. A habit that is particularly welcome if my handiwork is to be served as dessert rather than at tea time.
And yes, I do still “do” tea time: that moment during a working afternoon when we stop, put the kettle on and take a quiet 10 minutes to recharge the batteries with tea and cake. I wouldn’t ever want to see my table without at least a few crumbs on it.
Spiced quince cake
I pick up quinces at my local Turkish shops, although I found this batch, somewhat hearteningly, at a major supermarket. If I can’t find them, then pears will do nicely, too. The spiced cake mixture is made by the boiling method, and will appear more runny than the usual creamed cake mixture, so don’t be surprised that you can pour it into the cake tin. If you use pears instead, cook them for less time than the quinces – just until you can pierce them, effortlessly, with a skewer.
water 1.5 litres
caster sugar 150g
quinces 3, medium
lemon 1
For the cake:
self-raising flour 250g
ground cinnamon 1 tsp
mixed spice ½ tsp
bicarbonate of soda 1 tsp
salt a pinch
golden syrup 200g
butter 125g
dark muscovado sugar 125g
eggs 2
poaching syrup from the fruit 240ml
You will also need a round cake tin, measuring 24-25cm in diameter
Pour the water into a large saucepan, add the sugar and bring to the boil. Peel the quinces then cut them in half, rubbing the cut sides of each with the halved lemon to prevent them browning. (They are worse than pears for this.) Lower the quinces into the sugar syrup, turn down the heat to a simmer then let the fruit cook for a good 40 minutes or until it is thoroughly tender. Remove the pan from the heat and let the quinces cool a little in their syrup. Line the cake tin with a piece of baking parchment. Set the oven at 180C/gas mark 4.
When the quinces are cool enough to handle, take them out one at a time and use a teaspoon to remove the cores. Reserve the syrup. Drain the fruit briefly on a piece of kitchen paper then arrange them, hollow side up, in the base of the cake tin.
Sieve together the flour, cinnamon, mixed spice, salt and bicarb. Put the golden syrup, butter and muscovado in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. When the mixture starts to bubble, remove from the heat.
Break the eggs into a bowl, pour in 240ml of the quince cooking syrup and beat gently to mix. Remove the butter and sugar mixture from the heat and pour it into the flour and spice, stirring smoothly and firmly with a large metal spoon. Mix in the syrup and egg. The mixture should be glossy and a little runny, not thick and creamy like the usual cake mixture and with no traces of flour.
Scoop the mixture over the quinces and smooth the surface. Bake for 40-45 minutes until lightly firm and springy to the touch then remove from the oven and leave to cool before turning out and removing the paper. Serve in thick slices with crème fraîche or cream if you wish.
Pear, chocolate, hazelnut cake
It takes a few minutes to toast a packet of hazelnuts, but the reward is a much deeper flavour, and is something I never fail to do. Like all nuts, they scorch quickly, so I suggest you don’t take your eyes off them while they toast in the pan. No oil is required. Just a dry pan over a moderate heat, and shake the pan regularly to give the nuts a chance to brown evenly. If your pears aren’t perfectly ripe, cook them in syrup as per the quinces above.
You will need 2 small cake tins measuring around 15 x 9cm, or a loaf tin measuring 22cm x 12cm
For the pears:
pears 3
plain flour 250g
baking powder 2 tsp
butter 125g, softened
light Muscovado sugar 225g
dark chocolate 100g
toasted hazelnuts 75g
eggs 2
Set the oven at 180C/gas mark 4. Sift the flour and baking power together so they are well mixed. Cream the butter and sugar together using an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Cut the pears into small cubes (roughly 2cm). Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Cut the toasted hazelnuts in half.
Crack the eggs into a small bowl and beat lightly with a fork then add to the butter and sugar mixture, a little at a time. If the mixture curdles introduce a spoonful or two of the flour. Fold in the cooked pears, chocolate and hazelnuts then scoop into the lined cake tins.
Bake for about 50 minutes till risen and lightly firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and leave to cool.
These recipes were amended on 8 March 2016 – 1 tsp of baking powder is needed in the quince recipe, and butter is increased to 125g in the pear cake.
Email Nigel at nigel.slater@observer.co.uk or follow him on Twitter @NigelSlater
