The one thing I love about the colder seasons is all the cosy, comforting food it brings!
In my mind, this cake is the epitome of Autumn. Gorgeous, warming spice of ginger with a sticky sweet toffee sauce and toffee buttercream. Delish!
This isn’t a typical dark and treacly ginger cake – this one is light and fluffy and perfect as a layer cake.
It’s so utterly moreish! I hope you love it as much as I do!
This recipe makes a three layer 6″ cake that will serve up to 10 people. It will take approximately 3 hours to make including baking, cooling and decorating times. The sticky toffee sauce can be made up to 2 weeks in advance stored in an airtight container in the fridge. It can also be frozen for up to 3 months. If there’s any leftover, it’s great on ice cream!
Ingredients:
For the sponges:
- 350 g unsalted butter, softened
- 175 g caster sugar
- 175 g light brown sugar
- 6 eggs
- 250 g gluten free self-raising flour
- 100 g ground almonds
- 1tsp baking powder (make sure this is gluten free)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 4 tsp ground ginger
For the toffee sauce:
- 100 g unsalted butter
- 150 g light brown sugar
- 1 tbsp treacle
- 300 ml double cream
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
For the buttercream:
- 350 g unsalted butter, softened
- 700 g icing sugar
- 100 ml of toffee sauce
- 2-3 tbsp milk or water
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
Useful equipment: three 6″ cake tins, baking paper, mixing bowls, whisk, spatula, weighing scales, hand/stand mixer, measuring spoons, small measuring jug, wire rack, medium saucepan, piping nozzle, piping tips (I used piping tip 9FT), palette knife, cake scraper, cake turntable (optional but it makes life easier!)
Method:
For the sponges:
- Preheat the oven to 160 °C fan/320 °F and grease three 6″ cake tins lining the base with greaseproof paper.
- In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy.
- Whilst beating, add the eggs two at a time.
- Add the vanilla and mix to combine.
- Sift in the flour and baking powder and add the ground almonds and ground ginger. Fold gently until combined.
- Divide the cake mix equally between the three cake tins.
- Bake for 25-30 mins or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Leave the cakes to cool completely in the tin before turning out onto a wire rack.
For the toffee sauce:
- Place all of the ingredients for the sauce in a saucepan and mix together on a low heat until all the butter has melted and everything is well combined.
- Boil the sauce briefly for 1-2 mins with stirring.
- Take off the heat and leave to cool before using or storing. It should thicken as it cools down.
For the buttercream:
- In a mixing bowl, beat the butter until pale and smooth. Gradually add the icing sugar and keep mixing until a smooth consistency is reached. Add the cinnamon and mix well.
- Add the toffee sauce and mix to combine. The buttercream may get quite stiff at this point so it’s much easier to use a hand or stand mixer.
- Add the milk or water 1 tbsp at a time until you achieve a smooth, pipeable consistency.
- Place into a piping bag ready to assemble and decorate your cake!
To assemble the cake:
- Place the first cake layer on your serving plate (and onto a turntable if you have one – it makes decoration a lot easier!). Pipe a circle of buttercream around the edge of the sponge and fill the hole with toffee sauce. Repeat this step for your second layer and finish with your third layer on top.
- Now that your cake is assembled, spread a thin layer of buttercream around your cake using a palette knife to create a crumb coat and refrigerate for at least 30 mins.
- Once set, complete your cake with another coat of buttercream – using the palette knife and/or cake scraper to create a smooth finish.
- Using a piping nozzle of your choice (I used 9FT), pipe on top of the cake to decorate!
- Finally, get creative and add any decorations you wish! I used ‘Firecracker’ sprinkles from Baking Time Club to give it a bit of sparkle! You can find them here – use code PIPPA15 for an exclusive Pippatisserie discount!
This cake will keep up to 5 days in an airtight container. It is suitable for freezing for up to 3 months. It is best to slice it up and wrap each slice individually. Make sure to fully defrost and bring to room temperature before serving.
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