Sierra Leonean-style rich cake
6-8
Easy
30–40 minutes "I have fond childhood memories of the preparation process involved in making this cake. We would often cream the butter and sugar by hand using a wooden spoon in Sierra Leone and this could take hours, but the end result was worth it. The next step is where Sierra Leonean ingenuity comes in. We would butter the inside of empty powdered milk tins and use these as baking tins." – Maria Bradford
Ingredients
Method
- 150 g butter, plus extra for buttering
- 150 g caster sugar
- 3 eggs
- 50 g plain (all-purpose) flour
- 150 g self-raising flour
- 1 – 2 T full-cream milk
- finely grated zest of 1 orange
- 1 t natural orange flavouring
Method
Ingredients
1. Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature. Generously butter a 18cm cake tin. Preheat the oven to 180°C.
2. Using an electric hand-mixer, cream the butter and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until the mixture is pale, light and fluffy (10–15 minutes). Don’t rush this step; the more thoroughly the butter and sugar are combined, the lighter the cake will be.
3. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating the mixture well between each addition. Add 1 tablespoon of flour with the last egg to prevent curdling.
4. Sift both flours into the bowl and gently fold in, adding just enough milk to give a mixture that drops slowly from a spoon when the spoon is held away from the bowl. Fold in the orange zest and orange flavouring.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared tin and bake for 30–40 minutes or until golden-brown on top and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Turn the cake onto a cooling rack and leave to cool. Slice and enjoy.
This is an extract from "Sweet Salone: Recipes from the Heart of Sierra Leone" by Maria Bradford. Published by Hardie Grant and distributed by Jonathan Ball Publishers. Design and location photography by Dav E Brown. Recipe photography by Yuki Sugiura.
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