Ingredients

• 250 ml cider, preferably dry
• 175 ml sunflower oil
• 100 g soft dark brown sugar
• 300 g black treacle (use an oiled 250ml/1-cup measure for ease)
• 3 large eggs
• fresh gingerroot, peeled and finely grated to give 2 teaspoons
• 300 g plain flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 1/2 teaspoons Chinese five spice powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• nonstick cooking spray or sunflower oil, for greasing

Instructions

1. Equipment: 1 x 10-cup (2.5 litre capacity) bundt tin/pan or 1 x 20cm/8-inch square cake tin approximately 5.5cm/2 ¼-inches deep.

2. Open the cider so that it loses its fizz. Preheat the oven to 170°C/gas mark 3/325ºF, and grease your bundt tin with non-stick cooking spray, or simply oil it, and leave the tin upside down on a piece of newspaper or baking parchment while you get on with the batter.

3. Measure the oil, brown sugar and (whether you’re weighing it or going for volume and using a cup measure, always lightly oil the receptacle for the treacle first and it will slide out easily) black treacle into a bowl.

4. Pour in the cider and crack in the eggs, add the ginger and beat till smooth. While I use a freestanding mixerto make this cake, it’s simple enough by hand: in which case, beat the eggs together first before adding to the other ingredients.

5. In another bowl measure out the flour, baking powder, bicarb, nutmeg, 5-spice and cinnamon, and fork through to combine.

6. Gently tip the dry ingredients into the wet treacly mixture, beating as you go to make a smooth batter. Scrape the sides and the bottom of the bowl well to make sure there aren’t any pockets of flour.

7. Pour the dark and aromatic batter into the prepared tin: it will be very runny, but don’t be alarmed. Place in the oven to bake for 45–50 minutes, but start checking after 40. When the cake’s ready, it will start to come away from the sides of the tin and a cake tester should come out clean; that’s to say, not wet, but with some crumbs adhering to it. Transfer the bundt to a wire rack for about 30 minutes, then use your fingers to help prise the cake away from the edges of the tin, most particularly around the funnel, and turn out. Leave to cool completely before wrapping, first in parchment and then foil, as it tastes best if eaten the next day. I don’t always manage this.

8. STORE NOTE: The cake can be kept loosely wrapped in its parchment and foil, in an airtight container at cool room temperature for up to 1 week.

9. FREEZE NOTE: The fully cooled cake can be tightly wrapped in a double layer of clingfilm and a layer of foil and then frozen for up to 3 months. To defrost, unwrap and place on a wire rack and leave at room temperature for about 5 hours.