Malva pudding cake with custard icing

“I have often eaten cold leftovers of this iconic South African pudding, which tasted just as good as the warm version, so I felt inspired to make a malva pudding cake.” – Abigail Donnelly

1. To make the malva sponge, preheat the oven to 190°C. In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda. 2 In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the sugar, eggs and salt at a medium speed for about 2 minutes, or until the batter is thick and pourable. Reduce the speed to low and beat in the jam until incorporated, then mix in the melted butter and vinegar. 3 Add a third of the milk, then half of the flour mixture. Add another third of the milk, then the remaining flour. Finally, add the remaining milk and stir until smooth. If there are large lumps, whisk briefly, just until the batter is smooth.

4. Pour the batter into a 24 x 15 cm greased glass ovenproof bowl and bake for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven and poke holes into the cake using a wooden skewer. Pour over the cream, then chill overnight.

5. To make the custard buttercream, mix the custard powder and a little milk in a small saucepan to form a paste. Add the remaining milk and whisk well until smooth. Add half the sugar and mix well. Cook over a low heat, stirring continuously to prevent lumps, for about 7 minutes or until very thick. Transfer to a bowl and cover with clingwrap.

6. Place the butter and remaining sugar in a bowl and beat well, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary, until light and creamy. Add the salt to the cold custard and beat well. Add half the milk or cream and beat until smooth and there are no more sugar granules; this can take up to 5 minutes. Mix the custard and buttercream.

7. Remove the cake from the bowl and spread over the custard buttercream. Decorate with edible flowers.

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Photograph: Jan Ras
Production: Abigail Donnelly and Hannah Lewry
Food assistant: Josh van Zyl and Tahila Pillay