Sultana spice cake with quince curd – and Movember news

There is something about quince that I find appealing.  The last time I tried to describe it I ended up calling it a pregnant apple  and I still think that stands.  It’s almost a hybrid – the offspring of an apple and pear.  It has a gentle fragrance and a softly gritty texture (like a pear).

The one thing about quince that puts me off using it is how hard it is to chop.  But not this time!  I was very kindly gifted a knife sharpener by the nice people at Handpicked Collection and I decided to test it out with this task.  All I can say is – wow!  I leant on the knife expecting it to be a struggle to get through the, frankly massive, quince and almost lost my balance as the knife sliced through it without any strain.

I adapted the cake from one of my favourite recipes using brown sugar and mixed spice.  It really is a cracking cake and would be a good last minute Christmas cake if you want something lighter than the traditional fare.  It keeps like a dream too.

At the last minute I changed my mind about using the curd to sandwich the cake.  The reason for this was that it would’ve meant the whole cake needed refrigeration and I wasn’t sure the cake would keep well like that.  I served it on the side, as you would cream, but it would also be nice to spread it on the cake like butter.

Now, the observant among you will have noticed it’s November...or Movember as it’s known in Caked Crusader Mansions.  Mr CC has manned up again and is currently sporting a fairly sparse collection of whiskers that will shortly amount to a fine ‘tache...we hope!  If you wish to donate to a fabulous cause (fighting prostate and other male cancers) please visit Mr CC’s Mo space.  Please leave your name (or blogger name if you prefer) and I will enter you into my prize draw to win this:

Yes!  A totally awesome Nordicware bundt tin.  Because it’s such a good cause I will send the tin anywhere in the world so please don’t feel you can’t join in if you’re outside the UK; last year’s prize went to Poland.  I will draw the winner at the end of November.  Every donation helps, and justifies Mr CC sporting a bandito through my and his mother’s birthday party photos every year!  Thanks for any donation you can make.

Ingredients:

For the cake:
250g unsalted butter, at room temperature
125g golden caster sugar
125g light brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons mixed spice
320g sultanas
375g plain flour
1.5 teaspoons baking powder
170ml buttermilk

For the quince curd:
400g quince – peeled, cored and chopped.  400g is the prepared weight.  This will amount to one huge, or 2-3 normal quinces
65g lemon juice – I needed 2 lemons
125g caster sugar
4 eggs
75g unsalted butter – straight from the fridge

How to make:

Preheat the oven to 160°C/fan oven 140°C/315°F/Gas mark 2-3.

Line a 23cm round springform tin with baking paper.  Make sure the paper comes up above the height of the tin.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. This is a big cake that uses large quantities of ingredients so it will take longer to cream the butter and sugar. Don’t skimp!

Gradually beat in the egg and mixed spice. If the mix looks like it’s curdling add some of the flour.

Stir in the sultanas.

Fold in a third of the flour and baking powder, then a third of the buttermilk, then a third of the flour and so on until both are fully combined.

Spoon into the prepared tin and level the surface.

Bake for 1 - 1 ¼ hours or until a skewer comes out cleanly. Mine took 1 hour 5 minutes.  Cool for 30 minutes before removing from the tin and allowing to cool completely on a wire rack.

While the cake is baking and cooling you can make the curd: place the chopped quince in a saucepan and cover with cold water.

Bring to the boil then simmer until the quince is soft – mine took about 40 minutes, but as all fruits will be different I’d start checking it after 20 minutes.

Drain the quince and puree, while still warm, to a pulp.

Place the pureed quince into a glass or metal bowl and rest the bowl over a pan of simmering water, taking care that the water doesn’t touch the bowl.

In a separate bowl beat together the lemon juice, caster sugar and eggs.  You only need to beat until they are combined – you’re not looking to add volume to the mix.

Pour the egg mix into the quince and cook – stirring very regularly – until the mixture thickens.  This may take 20 minutes or more.

Once cooked, remove from the heat and stir in the cold butter.  This will make the curd shiny.

There is no harm in passing the curd through a sieve at this stage - just in case there are any eggy bits.

Leave to cool before refrigerating.

Up to this point, the cake can be made a day in advance of serving.

Assemble the cake when you’re ready to serve it: either slice the cake through into two or three layers and then sandwich with the curd, or cut slices and spread the curd on as if buttering it.  I decided to serve it on the side, like you would whipped cream.

Bask in glory at the wonderful thing you have made.

Eat.

Quince cake

Before making this cake I had two experiences of quince: firstly, as something the Owl and the Pussycat ate by the light of the moon (with runcible spoons, what else?) and, secondly, as that sticky paste/thick jam you get served on a cheeseboard.

I hadn’t planned to bake with quince but when browsing the stalls in Borough Market I spotted the lovely big round yellow fruits – looking very much like pregnant apples – and bought them on the spur of the moment, worrying about finding a recipe afterwards.

My next step was to look online for quince cake recipes. There weren’t that many in truth. Lots of recipes for paste, few for cake. As with everything in life, Amazon showed me the way – would you believe it sells a cookbook devoted to quince? Silly as it sounds (and trust me, I know it sounds silly) I felt like I had to do right by my beautiful quince so ordered the book. This method of cooking the quince comes from it...I’ve teamed it with a buttery, sweet pound cake-esque recipe.

If I had to sum up quince I’d say:

Pros

gorgeous aroma, like tropical apples

beautiful colour when cooked

lovely delicate flavour and texture

good score in a game of Scrabble

Cons

difficult to peel and cut keeping all fingers intact. It is a brute to cut – hard and dense in texture

needs a bit of love and care – in this recipe you have to poach the quince for 2.5 hours before you can even start making the cake

Here are the quince just about to start their 2 ½ poaching marathon:

Here they are at the end of the poaching time; their colour and aroma was just divine!

The texture was akin to pear, but the taste was tropical apple. We were all big fans. Quince and me may only just have met but I see this as the start of a beautiful friendship....if friendship is the right word where one of the ‘friends’ is always eaten by the other!

Ingredients

For the quince:

500ml water
150g caster sugar
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
1 cinnamon stick – about 6cm long
3 medium quince – peeled, cored and cut into wedges (about 12 wedges per quince)

For the cake:
250g unsalted butter, at room temperature
350g caster sugar (this isn’t a typo!!!)
4 eggs
280g plain flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
150ml double cream
2 tablespoons of the poaching syrup you cooked the quince in.

Method

Start by preparing the quince – this can be done up to 3 days ahead of making the cake.

Place all the ingredients into a large pan and bring to a simmer over a low heat.

Cover the pan and simmer for 2-2 ½ hours or until the quince turns a deep red colour.
Remove from the heat and discard the cinnamon stick.

Cool to room temperature and then chill until cold.
Cover and chill until needed – the quince will keep for up to 3 days.

Now make the cake: Preheat the oven to 190°C/fan oven 170°C/375°F/Gas mark 5.

Line a 20cm round springform tin with baking paper.

Beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Don’t skimp on this stage as this is when you get lots of lovely air into your sponge.
While the butter and sugar is creaming, drain the chilled fruit through a sieve (retain the poaching syrup) and pat dry with paper towels.
Beat in the eggs one at a time (to the butter and sugar) and beat to ensure they are well incorporated.
Add half of the flour along with the baking powder, cinnamon and vanilla.
Add half of the cream and beat until combined.

Beat in the remaining flour, followed by the remaining cream and the 2 tablespoons of poaching syrup.

Fold the quince into the batter and spoon into the prepared cake tin – I retained some of the prettier slices to place on top of the batter; I also cut some of the bigger chunks through as I didn’t want them to sink in the cake.

Bake for approximately 1 hour 10 minutes or until a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Mine took nearer 1 ½ hours. If the top starts to brown too much, cover loosely with foil.
Leave to cool on a wire rack until the tin is cool enough to handle, then turn the cake out and leave to cool completely.

Serve with a cup of tea – nothing else is needed!

Bask in the glory of the wonderful thing you have made.

Eat.