Trinidad Black Cake

Black cake and brandy

One of the pleasures of moving to a foreign country is discovering and embracing new holiday traditions.  Here on Tortola you know Christmas is just around the corner when Bolo’s Department Store starts blaring King Obstinate’s “How Will Santa Get Here.”  There is no reindeer in my country, he have to borrow me neighbor’s donkey, Ho Ho Ho… Ho Ho Ho, how will Santa get here.  Let me tell you, once that tune gets stuck in your head, it’s there for a while.

There’s no snow, of course, but the snowbirds are arriving in droves.  And yes, there are loads of good things to eat and drink this time of year.  The pigs are getting nervous right about now, with roast pork and ham being popular Christmas offerings.  As Stanley and the Ten Sleepless Nights sing,  I don’t want no manicou, you could keep your callaloo, I want a piece of pork for my Christmas.

Show up at a Caribbean house this time of the year and you may be offered a glass of guavaberry liqueur or sorrel and a slice of black cake.  I made black cake for the first time last year and, as in all things Trini, took advice from Devica. She in turn made a few calls to Trinidad and produced three recipes.  I did a mash-up of the three and this is the cake I ended up with.  It’s a good idea to start early.  The more time the fruit has to soak in the booze, the better.  But it’s never too late and there’s still time before Christmas if you get a move on.

Devica brought this one from Trinidad

Trinidad Black Cake

Black cake contains two quintessential Caribbean ingredients – mixed essence and browning.  Mixed essence is a blend of essence extracts used to flavor sweets and drinks.  If you can’t find mixed essence, substitute maraschino cherry juice.

Browning is a dark caramel syrup used in the Caribbean to add depth and color to both sweet and savory dishes.  It is not the same as American-style gravy browning which usually contains salt or other flavorings.  You can find browning at shops that carry Caribbean products or you can make your own.

To make browning, put a pound of white or brown sugar in a heavy pot over medium-high heat.  Cook the sugar, stirring, until it melts.  Continue stirring and cooking the melted sugar until it’s very dark, almost black.  Remove the pot from the heat and stir in 1/2 cup boiling water.  Careful, it will splatter.  Let the browning cool and then store until needed.  Use to add color and depth to pelau, stews and cakes.

Dried fruit

Fruit:

1/2 pound golden raisins

1/2 pound black raisins

1 pound dried prunes

1/2 pound glacé (candied) cherries

1 pound dried currants

1/4 pound candied mixed peel

1 stick cinnamon

1 bottle dark rum

1 bottle cherry brandy

Cake:

8 large eggs

1 pound butter, at room temperature

1 cup white granulated sugar

1 cup demerara sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

grated peel of 1/2 a lime and 1/2 an orange

1/2 pound chopped almonds (optional)

1/2 cup Caribbean browning

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 teaspoons mixed essence

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground allspice

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Additional rum for brushing the cakes

Soaking the fruits:  Chop the fruits and put them in a large bowl.  A big Tupperware bowl with a lid is good.  Add the cinnamon stick and the booze.  Cover the bowl tightly and set aside in a cool spot to macerate for at least 2-3 days.  A week is better.  A month or even a year is not unknown.

Make the cake:  Preheat the oven to 275°.  Butter two 8″ or 9″ round baking tins and line with parchment paper.  Put the macerated fruit in a blender or food processor and pulse to break down the fruit a little.  Don’t purée the fruit, leave it a bit lumpy.  You can skip this step if you prefer your fruit a bit chunkier.  I did.

Macerating fruit

Sift the salt, flour and baking powder together and set aside.  Cream the butter and sugar together in a large bowl.  Add the eggs, citrus peel, spices, vanilla and essence and mix to combine.  Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix to combine.  Stir in the fruits, nuts and browning.

Pour the batter into the cake tins and don’t forget to lick the bowl.  Black cake batter is the best ever.  I think it’s the rum.  Bake the cakes at 275° for 2 hours.  Remove from the oven and brush the tops with rum.  Let the cakes cool and brush them with rum again.  Remove the cakes from the pan and wrap in parchment paper or wax paper, then aluminum foil.  Black cake is a beautiful “keeping” cake and you can hold them in the refrigerator for up to a year.  If you want to keep your cakes for more than a few days, you can brush them with rum occasionally to help keep them moist.   Makes 2 cakes.