Sometimes you have an idea for a cake and you know where you want to end up and you think you know how you’re going to get there. This Rhubarb & Ginger Cake turned out wonderfully but was the result of misreading a couple of my old recipes by using double the amount of sugar and over chopping my crystallised ginger into a paste. Luckily because I changed the sugar to dark brown Muscovado and the rhubarb is so tart this worked perfectly and the ginger being minced made for a more even ginger flavour. I also managed to look at the wrong cooking time and ended up having to send my husband off on the school run as the cake took longer to cook than I thought.
I’d planned to take my daughter to see Harry Hill after school (he was shooting a movie locally) as she was keeping a diary for the class toy dog and had thought it would be cool to have a picture of Cecil and Harry together. So as I’d been told he was shooting until 7 pm and feeling guilty that I’d let my daughter down we scurried from the dinner table and arrived just as he was leaving the garden where he’d been shooting.
I’d met Harry once before 12 years ago at the filming of the pilot episode of TV Burp and he’d given me a fake sausage which he’d used as a moustache in a sketch. I decided that as I’d missed the opportunity to get this signed all those years ago it was time to right that wrong (and of course it would be worth far more on e-bay as I explained to him LOL). Harry even remembered the sketch which was good as bystanders did remark this was probably the first time he’d been asked to sign a sausage! I took a picture of my daughter with Harry and Cecil (so funny as she was so shy), so all in all we had a successful day after all! Some things are just meant to be:-)
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- Harry signing my sausage.
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- Harry posing with my shy daughter!
My husband and son loved this Rhubarb & Ginger Cake as did I with only my daughter refusing to try it as she’s not a fan of ginger! I will definitely be making it again. This cake will keep for a couple of days but is best on the day of baking.
As this recipe is seasonal I am entering it into Simple and in Season run by Ren Behan and as it’s made from scratch I’m also entering it into Made with Love Mondays from Javelin Warrior’s Cookin w/Luv.
For more rhubarb and ginger recipes you might like to check out the following:
- Rhubarb & Marzipan Cake
- Rhubarb & Ginger Jam
- Rhubarb Compote with Vanilla Greek Yogurt & Meringue
- Easy Ginger Avocado Cake with Lemon Drizzle
- Pear Chocolate & Ginger Crumble
- Pumpkin & Ginger Jam
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Rhubarb & Ginger Cake
Ingredients
- 230 g Rhubarb chopped into 1.5cm pieces
- 30 g Almonds finely chopped
- 150 g Butter softened or Flora Buttery (which I used)
- 150 g Dark brown muscovado sugar
- 30 g Crystallised Ginger minced in a herb chopper or finely chopped
- 150 g Plain flour
- 2 tsp Baking powder
- 2 Large eggs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 190°C.
- Butter and flour a large loaf tin (21.5cm x 11.5cm x 6cm).
- Sprinkle chopped almonds into base.
- Whisk butter and sugar together until creamy
- Add the eggs beating in one at a time. Don’t worry if the mixture splits.
- Beat in the minced ginger.
- Sift the flour and baking powder together and fold in gradually.
- Fold in the rhubarb.
- Place mixture into the loaf tin and spread out evenly with a spatula.
- Bake in the middle of the oven for about 50 minutes or until cake springs back to touch in the centre or a scewer comes out clean.
Hi there I’m going to attempt this cake for the top tier of my mums wedding cake what buttercream icing would go nicely with it do you think? Just a vanilla buttercream icing? Kind regards sammi
His Sammi, yes vanilla sounds good or even lemon would potentially work well. I’d have a dry run and see what you think ahead of the day:-) Good luck with the wedding:-)
His Sammi, yes vanilla sounds good or even lemon would potentially work well. I’d have a dry run and see what you think ahead of the day:-)
Would you think it’s ok to use fresh ginger root??
Hi Emma, I notice there is a Nigella recipe online which has 2 tsp of freshly grated ginger in it but as it’s on a US site I can actually click to see the whole recipe. I wouldn’t like to recommend substituting fresh ginger for crystallised as they are 2 different ingredients in composition and flavour and without having tried it I can say what the outcome would be.
Loving the sound of the warming ginger with tart rhubarb which I am a huge fan of
Thanks, it is a luscious cake:-)
My rhubarb is from my garden, its rather sour, can I add more sugar, also does the rhubarb soften whilst the cake is cooking. ?
I’m sure the sweetness of the cake would counter the sourness from the rhubarb, adding more sugar wouldn’t make the rhubarb any less sour. Yes the rhubarb cooks along with the cake so goes soft:-) You could just cut the rhubarb smaller to counteract the sourness.
hi can you add chocolate to the recipie
I wouldn’t personally but it’s your cake and if you want to put chocolate in it….
This looks yummy and quite different I love rhubarb and it’s nice to see it being used a lot more again 🙂
It is really good:-)
Love the fact there are chunky bits of rhubarb in this cake
Thanks Ursula:-)
I also don’t like Ginger so would try the rhubarb and marzipan 😀 looks lovely though 🙂
Aah, well I have a rhubarb and marzipan cake elsewhere on blog for you then:-) https://www.fabfood4all.co.uk/rhubarb-and-marzipan-cake/
Oh wow! Must give this one a go!
I really like the idea of the rhubarb cake, it looks great, i’m not so sure about the ginger so i’d maybe leave that out
Maybe you’d like my Rhubarb and Marzipan Cake better then! https://www.fabfood4all.co.uk/rhubarb-and-marzipan-cake/
Its great when something good turns out from a mistake