Golden Syrup Cake

It was a dull and rainy, cold day out there today and I felt like baking a cake for myself. Nothing too complicated. Just a simple cake. Plain and yet tasty. Perfect for enjoying with a hot drink.
I had had my eye on this Super Simple Golden Syrup Cake recipe on a blog called Scottish Scran for a while now and it was the perfect day to bake it.

Golden Syrup is something I always have in my home. It is something I fell in love with in the U.K. Golden syrup (or light treacle) is a thick, amber-colored, syrup that is created in the process of refining sugar cane or sugar beets. It is a very common baking ingredient in the U.K.
It has a lovely caramel-like flavor with a slight citrus undertone that you might miss if you weren't looking for it.

You can sometimes see it in the grocery stores here in Nova Scotia, but it is not Tate and Lyle's. I buy my Tate and Lyle's from Blighty's, which is an online British grocery shop in Ontario. You can also get it on Amazon both here in Canada and in the U.S.
It is worth every penny. I like to squirt it on my morning oatmeal. Just a tiny bit. It adds a lovely flavor and hint of sweetness.

The recipe calls for a 1 pound loaf tin, which I looked up and a 1-pound loaf tin measures 8 inches by 4 inches by 2 inches. I had a pan roughly that size, but not quite as tall as a loaf tin, but I went with it anyways!
I ended up with a cake that didn't quite crown as it would have done in the right sized pan, and it flattened out a bit at the sides, but it was still really lovely. I have ordered myself the right sized loaf tin now. I don't know why I waited so long! I have about 3 2-pound loaf tins, but had no 1-pound tin!
I know! What am I like!

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE GOLDEN SYRUP CAKE
Pretty simple baking storecupboard ingredients. Except for the golden syrup you probably have everything in the house right now to bake this!

100g (7 TBS) butter
75g (1/3 cup, packed) soft light brown sugar
25g (2 TBS) caster sugar (white granulated
200g (2/3 cup) golden syrup
1 large free range egg
150ml (7 TBS) milk
200g (1 3/4 cup + 1 TBS) self rising flour (see notes)
additional golden syrup to brush on top (optional)

I just use regular salted butter. I don't keep any other kind in my home. It always works fine for me and if salt is an issue, I find you can always cut back on the salt in any recipe to make up for it.
Caster sugar is a finely granulated sugar that is used for baking in the U.K. a lot. Because of it's fine consistency it melts perfectly into any baked good without leaving grains of sugar. I find that the granulated sugar here in Canada is quite fine anyways, and in the case of this recipe the sugar is melted together with the syrup and butter so it works very well.

Most cakes in the U.K. are made using self raising flour. This is not something which is very common where I live. I have never seen it in my local shops, but it is very easy to make your own. I give instructions on how to do that in my recipe notes.
I have been making my own self rising flour (even in the U.K.) for years and have never had an issue with it. It works out just fine! I make it up 2 or 3 cups worth at a time and it always gets used up!

HOW TO MAKE GOLDEN SYRUP CAKE
This is a really simple cake to make. You do need to melt the sugars and butter together, but other than that everything just gets beaten together in a bowl. Easy peasy lemon squeezy.

Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. (160*C/320*F for a fan assisted oven). Butter your loaf tin and line with baking parchment.Place the butter, both sugars and the golden syrup into a saucepan and heat gently on the hob, stirring until everything has melted together and amalgamated. Set aside to cool.Measure the flour into a bowl. Whisk the egg and milk together and then add this to the flour mixture along with the cooled syrup mixture. Whisk everything together until smooth. Pour into the prepared tin.Bake for 45 minutes to an hour until the cake is golden brown, risen and the top springs back when lightly touched. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.Leave to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then lift out to a wire rack to cool completely. If desired you can brush the top of the cake with some additional golden syrup while still warm.

This was quite simply a lovely cake. Not too sweet, with a lovely hint of caramel flavor from the use of the golden syrup. Do brush some more on top of the warm cake if you can. It really adds a lovely touch.
Its not a large cake but it is a lovely cake. Rich and moist. Perfect. It needed no adornment really and went down well with a nice hot cup of peppermint tea. Perfect on a rainy day!

Some other recipes for lovely Teatime Cakes that I have baked on here that you might enjoy are:
MARMALADE CAKE - A simple cake from the WI which is flavored with marmalade. It is moist with a lovely and tender crumb. A simple icing sugar glaze garnishes the top. The marmalade adds just a hint of bittersweet in contrast to the normal sugar which is used. Not at all unpleasant. This is one of my favorite cakes.SULTANA CAKE - A rich and buttery cake, with a moist crumb, studded throughout with lovely sticky sultana raisins. This delicious loaf cake is beautiful cut into thick slices and served with nice hot cups of tea. Its gorgeous.
Yield: one 8-inch loaf cake (1 lb. loaf tin)Author: Marie Rayner

Prep time: 15 MinCook time: 1 HourTotal time: 1 H & 15 MMoist and delicious. Not overly sweet. Beautiful with a hot drink.

Ingredients

100g (7 TBS) butter
75g (1/3 cup, packed) soft light brown sugar
25g (2 TBS) caster sugar (white granulated
200g (2/3 cup) golden syrup
1 large free range egg
150ml (7 TBS) milk
200g (1 3/4 cup + 1 TBS) self rising flour (see notes)
additional golden syrup to brush on top (optional)

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350*F/180*C/ gas mark 4. (160*C/320*F for a fan assisted oven). Butter your loaf tin and line with baking parchment.
Place the butter, both sugars and the golden syrup into a saucepan and heat gently on the hob, stirring until everything has melted together and amalgamated. Set aside to cool.
Measure the flour into a bowl. Whisk the egg and milk together and then add this to the flour mixture along with the cooled syrup mixture. Whisk everything together until smooth. Pour into the prepared tin.
Bake for 45 minutes to an hour until the cake is golden brown, risen and the top springs back when lightly touched. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean.
Leave to cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then lift out to a wire rack to cool completely.
If desired you can brush the top of the cake with some additional golden syrup while still warm.

Notes

You can very easily make your own self rising flour. For every cup of flour needed (140g) add 1 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/4 tsp of salt. I make it up three cups at a time and keep it in an airtight container. It always gets used up.

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