Desserts
Bajan Great Cake
Ingredients
- - 500 g (3 cups) mixed dried fruit (raisins, currants, prunes, cherries), soaked in rum for at least 2 weeks
- - 250 g (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened
- - 250 g (1 1/4 cups) brown sugar
- - 5 eggs
- - 300 g (2 1/2 cups) plain flour
- - 1 tsp baking powder
- - 1 tsp mixed spice
- - 1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
- - 1 tsp vanilla extract
- - 60 ml (1/4 cup) browning (burnt sugar syrup)
- - 125 ml (1/2 cup) dark rum, plus extra for feeding
- - 125 ml (1/2 cup) port or sweet red wine
Method
- Blend the rum-soaked dried fruit with a little of its soaking liquid until it forms a thick, chunky paste.
- Preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F) and line the cake tin with parchment paper.
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then beat in the eggs one at a time.
- Sift together the flour, baking powder, mixed spice and nutmeg, and fold gently into the batter.
- Fold in the blended fruit paste, vanilla, browning, rum and port until fully combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared tin and smooth the top.
- Bake for 2-2.5 hours, checking from 1.5 hours, until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
- Cool completely in the tin, then feed with a few tablespoons of extra rum before storing.
Introduction: Great cake is Barbados’s version of the rich, rum-and-wine-soaked black cake found across the English-speaking Caribbean at Christmas.
Cultural Background: Great cake is Barbados’s version of the rich, rum-and-wine-soaked black cake found across the English-speaking Caribbean at Christmas. Dried fruits are steeped in rum and port for months beforehand, then folded into a dark, treacly batter and baked slowly until dense and fragrant — a dessert so labour-intensive it has traditionally marked the most important celebrations of the Bajan calendar, from Christmas to weddings.
Tips: Soak the dried fruit for as long as possible — several weeks to months gives the deepest flavour. Cover the top with foil partway through baking if it browns too quickly.
Variations: Substitute some of the rum with cherry brandy for a fruitier note, as some Bajan families do. Bake in individual small tins for gift-giving at Christmas.
Storage: Wrap tightly and store in an airtight tin at room temperature for several weeks, feeding occasionally with rum.
Reheating: Great cake is served at room temperature and is not reheated.
Nutrition: Approx. 410 kcal, 5 g protein, 48 g carbohydrates, 16 g fat per slice.
FAQs:
Q: Can I make this alcohol-free?
A: Yes — substitute the rum and port with strong spiced fruit juice, though the flavour and shelf life will differ.
Q: Why is my cake dense?
A: Great cake is meant to be dense and moist by design, closer to a fruit pudding than a sponge.