Today was a very exciting day.
It was the first time we got together in person with our friends for a Korean language class. Over a year of online classes with 선생님 teacher over Zoom has left its toll on me, with an expanding waistline and a shrinking vocabulary. It is as if the longer I stare at the screen, the faster the words seep out of my brain and vanish into thin air.
Over the past year I have not been making as many cakes to share with friends as in pre-Covid times. When I am out of practice I find it best to return to classics. Yesterday morning I made a lemon drizzle cake with a tablespoon of poppy seeds added. This was gone by lunch time as I gave six out of 10 slices away.
After dinner I made another one of these cakes, this time with yuzu jam and stem ginger. The cake was well received, as were the cheese popover scones (next blog). Our class is meeting again next week: everyone is happy to be catching up face-to-face, and I am happy to be baking again.
As far as I can tell, stem ginger in syrup is only used as an ingredient in cakes and sometimes in biscuits
유자차 citron tea is a bit like marmalade and is unique to Korea. To make it into ‘tea’ which is said to ward off colds. put a tablespoon of the yuzu jam into a small cup of hot water
For the Cake:
Zest of two lemons
100 g (50 g + 50 g) unrefined caster sugar
175 g unsalted butter, softened
3 large eggs
50 g yuzu jam (+ 2 tablespoons for the glaze)
175 g self-raising flour
100 g stem ginger preserved in syrup, cut into halves
2 tablespoons ginger syrup from the bottle
For the Lemon Syrup:
60 g lemon juice
60 g unrefined caster sugar
You will also need a 2-lb loaf tin, lined with grease-proof paper.
How to Make:
(For the regular non-Thermomix method, please scroll to the bottom of the post).
Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F.
Place the lemon zest and 50 g sugar in the TM mixing bowl. Grind 10 seconds / speed 10. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicon spatula.
Grind again 10 seconds / speed 10. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add 50 g sugar, the butter, eggs and yuzu jam then mix 20 seconds / speed 5.
Add the flour, stem ginger and syrup. Mix 15 seconds / speed 5.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix again 15 seconds / speed 5.
Pour the cake mixture into the loaf tin and bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, or until the cake bounces back when touched. A metal skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.
Whilst the cake is baking, make the lemon syrup. Place the lemon juice and sugar in a small pot and warm through until the sugar has dissolved.
When the cake is ready, cool it for 5 minutes then prick it all over with a skewer. Remove from the tin then spoon the syrup all over the cake. Continue to do this until the syrup has been soaked up.
Whilst the cake is still warm, glaze the top with 2 tablespoons of yuzu jam.
Leave to cool completely before cutting into 10 thick or 12 medium-sized pieces.
For the non-Thermomix method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F.
Place the flour, butter, sugar, eggs, yuzu jam and ginger syrup into a large mixing bowl.
Chop the ginger pieces finely and add this to the bowl.
Zest the lemon peel straight into the bowl.
Using an electric hand beater, beat on a medium speed until the ingredients are all thoroughly mixed together.
Pour the cake mixture into the loaf tin and bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, or until the cake bounces back when touched. A metal skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.
Whilst the cake is baking, make the lemon syrup. Place the lemon juice and sugar in a small pot and warm through until the sugar has dissolved.
When the cake is ready, cool it for 5 minutes then prick it all over with a skewer. Remove from the tin then spoon the syrup all over the cake. Continue to do this until the syrup has been soaked up.
Whilst the cake is still warm, glaze the top with 2 tablespoons of yuzu jam.
Leave to cool completely before cutting into 10 thick or 12 medium-sized pieces.
These plates are from Yido Pottery, from their main store in Seoul
Update 03 July 2021:
I made another similar cake for tea last Sunday to share with my neighbours, using proper orange marmalade and without a glaze.
Ingredients for an Orange and Stem Ginger Cake:
Zest of two oranges
125 g (50 g + 75 g) unrefined caster sugar
175 g unsalted butter, softened
3 large eggs
50 g orange marmalade
175 g self-raising flour
100 g stem ginger preserved in syrup, cut into halves
1 teaspoon orange oil (Boyajian brand)
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 350°F.
Place the orange zest and 50 g sugar in the TM mixing bowl. Grind 10 seconds / speed 10. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicon spatula.
Grind again 10 seconds / speed 10. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add 75 g sugar, the butter, eggs and marmalade then mix 20 seconds / speed 5.
Add the flour and mix 15 seconds / speed 5.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the ginger and orange oil and mix 15 seconds / speed 5.
Pour the cake mixture into the loaf tin and bake in the preheated oven for 50 minutes, or until the cake bounces back when touched. A metal skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean.