CookEat Recipe
English-Style Currant Cake
A rich cake with dried currants and candied peel, using the weight of five whole eggs to measure its flour and sugar.
Method
Steps
Step 1
Gather the ingredients: 5 eggs, weighed in their shells; Caster sugar equal to the total weight of the eggs in their shells, typically about 280–320 g; Plain flour equal to the same weighed egg total, plus 5 g for the tin; 200 g dried currants; 205 g butter: 200 g for the batter and 5 g for the tin; 30 g candied citrus peel, cut small; 1 level teaspoon baking soda, about 5 g; 5 g icing sugar for the tin.
Step 2
Weigh the five eggs in their shells. Measure that same weight of caster sugar and that same weight of flour for the batter, keeping the additional 5 g tin flour separate. Rinse the dried currants if needed and dry them thoroughly. Use prepared food-grade dried currants, not grapes left in an uncontrolled warm place.
Step 3
Beat the whole eggs with the caster sugar. Add the measured batter flour and work thoroughly with a wooden spoon for about 30 minutes, scraping the bowl regularly. Cover and refrigerate at 4°C or below for 1–2 hours instead of resting the raw egg batter in a warm room.
Step 4
Towards the end of the rest, heat the oven to 170°C. Grease a smooth round tin about 24 cm across and at least 7 cm deep with the 5 g tin butter, then dust with the 5 g tin flour mixed with the icing sugar. Melt the 200 g batter butter over a warm water bath and let cool until just lukewarm.
Step 5
Stir the butter gradually into the rested batter until evenly incorporated. Add the baking soda, thoroughly dried currants and small pieces of candied peel and mix until evenly distributed. Transfer immediately to the prepared tin, leaving at least one third of its height free for expansion.
Step 6
Bake for about 45–60 minutes until golden and fully set, with no wet batter on a long skewer reaching the centre. Shield loosely with foil if the top colours early. Cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a rack and cool completely before slicing. Serve without an icing-sugar topping; the measured icing sugar is only for the tin.
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