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Our love affair with all things Scandinavian continues with Nordic Bakery Cookbook, a collection of regional baked specialties, like this cardamom-laced ginger cake.
300 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
250 g light muscovado sugar
3 tsp vanilla
5 eggs
3 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp ground cloves
3 tsp freshly ground cardamom
16 tsp ground ginger
300 g plain flour
PREHEAT the oven to 180°C (350°F) Gas 4.
PUT the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl and cream with a wooden spoon or handheld electric whisk until pale and fluffy. Stir in the vanilla extract. Add the eggs one by one, whisking well after each addition.
IN a separate bowl, sift the baking powder, spices and flour together, then fold into the egg mixture. Spoon the mixture into a greased 18-cm loose-bottomed/springform cake tin and level the top with the back of the spoon.
BAKE in the preheated oven for 50–60 minutes, until the cake is firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. The cake tastes best the day after baking and is also suitable for freezing.
Nordic Bakery Cookbook is a collection of regional baked specialties like spice cake made with rye flour and not-too-sweet cardamom-laced ginger cake (recipe above).
Nordic Bakery Cookbook, Melissa Mink, $25.