Gingerbread bundt cake recipe - Recipes - BBC Good Food

Heat the oven to 160C/140C/gas 3. Butter the inside of a 2 litre bundt tin and lightly dust the inside with plain flour, tipping out the excess.

Put the butter, golden syrup, treacle, brown sugar and chocolate into a pan. Heat to melt the butter and chocolate and dissolve the sugar. Add the stem ginger and Guinness, heat to hot but not boiling and mix well. Take off the heat, whisk in the bicarb (it will foam), and leave to cool slightly.

Sift the flour, baking powder and spices with a pinch of salt into a large bowl. Whisk the eggs and the cooled golden syrup mixture into the dry ingredients in three batches, mixing well until completely smooth. Pour the batter into the prepared tin. Tap on the work surface to release any large air bubbles and bake for about 45-50 minutes or until well risen and a wooden skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and rest in the tin for no more than 2 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack and cool completely. Wrap the cold cake in clingfilm and leave overnight or a couple of days before glazing to allow the spice flavours to develop.

To glaze, transfer the cake to a baking paper- covered baking sheet. Warm the ginger preserve (or apricot jam) in a small pan and use to brush over the surface of the cake. Pour the lemon juice into a small pan and heat gently until just boiling. Add the icing sugar and stir until melted and smooth. Leave the lemon icing to cool for 2-3 minutes then brush all over the surface of the cake in an even layer. Slide the cake back into an oven heated to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3 for 5 minutes until the glaze has become translucent. Leave until the icing has set before serving.

OVERNIGHT MATURING It's best to make this in advance then leave it un-iced in an airtight box overnight or for a couple of days and glaze it an hour or so before serving. That way the flavours all get a chance to develop.