Serves 8-10
Prep time: 20-25 minutes
Total time: 10-12 hours (including cooling & finishing time)
Ingredients:
Cake:
2 cups All-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup dark brown sugar + 2 tablespoons white sugar
1 cup milk powder
1 cup milk
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup sour cream or Greek yogurt
4 tbsp grated fresh ginger OR 1 1/2 tbsp ground ginger
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup water (if needed)
Soaking liquid:
4 tbsp ginger beer (non alcoholic)
2 tbsp high quality bourbon (leave off for non alcoholic cake)
Filling:
4 cups peeled & chopped peaches (fresh or frozen)
1-2 tbsp sugar or to taste. (to be used only if fruit isn’t naturally sweet)
Frosting:
200 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
450 grams icing/confectioner’s sugar, sifted
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/4-1/2 cup peach filling
Gel food coloring, if desired
Directions:
1. Purée the peaches, strain, and put into a saucepan. Add sugar if needed and set to warm on a medium flame. Heat through for a few minutes. The purée should be fairly thick and flavor-concentrated. Set aside to cool in a bowl.
2. Heat ginger beer in a small saucepan for a few minutes. Take off the heat and mix in the bourbon if using. Set aside to cool.
3. Prepare 3-6” round cake tins and set them aside.
4. Preheat oven to 375F.
5. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt & cinnamon (if using). Set aside.
6. Place butter in a large mixing bowl and begin creaming. Beat till it turns pale (4-5 minutes). Add sugar & milk powder and beat for another 2-3 minutes.
7. Add in all the rest of the wet ingredients (except water) and mix for a minute or two.
8. Fold in the dry ingredients in 2 batches using a spatula.
9. Once all dry ingredients are incorporated, check for consistency and adjust with a tiny amount of water if needed.
10. Pour batter evenly into the prepared tins and bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
11. Un-mold cakes after cooling them in the tin for 10 minutes. Allow cakes to cool completely on a wire rack for at least 5-6 hours or even overnight. They can also be refrigerated to cool down faster.
12. To make frosting, place butter in a large mixing bowl and whip for 4-5 minutes or till it turns pale & fluffy. Add in the sugar in 2-3 batches beating well with each addition. Once all the sugar is mixed in, add in the vanilla & cooled peach purée a little at a time mixing well with each addition. Add enough purée to give you a fluffy & spreadable (not runny) icing. Taste to ensure that you can taste the peaches. Add food color if using and blend thoroughly. Cover & set aside.
13. Level the cake layers (if needed) with either a serrated knife or a cake leveler so you have flat tops.
14. Place a small quantity of icing in a piping or ziplock bag. Cut off a small bit of the top to allow the icing to be piped.
15. Smear a small bit of icing on the cake board/plate and place your first cake layer on it. Brush the layer liberally with the prepared soaking liquid in one or two passes. The cake should be moist, not drenched!
16. Spread a small amount of icing on the cake layer. Then pipe a small icing wall using the piping bag around the perimeter of the cake. Make sure the wall doesn’t have any gaps or the filling will ooze out!
17. Fill the center cavity with the peach purée. Use enough to give you a nice peach flavor but should be contained inside the icing wall/barrier.
18. Place the next layer of cake over it and press gently so it doesn’t move around. Repeat filling as before. Place the last layer of cake on top with the bottom side up. This will give you a clean crumb-free surface to frost.
19. Brush with soaking liquid & chill for 15 minutes before covering the cake with icing. Decorate as desired.
20. Refrigerate the completed cake for 1-2 hours. Remove from fridge about 30 minutes before cutting.
This cake is a wonderful combination of the festive flavors of brown sugar, ginger & bourbon with the sweet freshness of ripe peaches. Enjoy!
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