Fig and orange porter cake

[Birdie Wife]

This recipe is based on a traditional Irish cake that I've been making for several years and is a fabulous autumn/winter cake, lovely with cheese, and would make a lovely Christmas cake too if you wanted to up the fruit in the recipe. I made this variation at the weekend and thought it was pretty good too so I thought I'd share it with you

Fig and Orange Porter Cake
makes 1 x 8” cake (you’ll need a deep tin though)

350g plain flour
175g butter or margarine
1 tsp mixed spice or cinnamon
175g light brown sugar
250g dried figs
100g currants
100g raisins
zest of 1 orange
50g glace cherries
50g flaked almonds
3 eggs
150ml porter or stout
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

Preheat the oven to 140degC.

In a large bowl, mix the flour and spice together and rub in the fat. Mix in the sugar, fruit and nuts. Warm the porter/stout and dissolve the bicarb into it. Mix into the beaten eggs, and pour the mixture into the flour/fruit mixture. Mix together thoroughly, pour into your tin and level the top. Bake at 140degC for a hour, then turn the oven down to 120deg and bake for a further 2 hours or until a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin and store for a day in an airtight tin before cutting.

[Keith2202]

Thanks Birdie Wife sounds very nice, especially as I love porter!
Also as the recipe only uses 150ml compared to the 500ml in the bottle, I guess that means I would have to finish the bottle! Waste not, want not

[Birdie Wife]

That's the other reason why this is my favourite cake

[Lovage]

Thanks ! sounds like my kind of cake - must try it at the weekend.

I was put off cakes for years as most were just sugar, fat and white flour.
I'm now collecting recipes which are more nutritionally balanced - using less sugar and more fruit ( or squash, carrot or even beetroot ) together with more nuts and seeds and sometimes yoghurt.
I am trying to avoid using margarine now so might try substituting with corn oil

Bring back the cake!!