Honey gingerbread with lemon icing

Get into the spirit of the Christmas season early with this sweet and tasty gingerbread cake.

Vogue Entertaining + Travel

Vogue Entertaining + Travel - October 2007 , Page 104
Recipe by Sophia Young

Photography by Ian Wallace

• 225ml full-fat milk
• 225g honey
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• 125g dark muscovado sugar
• 2 eggs
• 125g (2/3 cup) dried figs, finely chopped
• 60g glace ginger, finely chopped
• 250g (12/3 cups) self-raising flour
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 200g icing sugar, sifted

1. Step 1
   Preheat oven to 180°C. Grease and line the base of a 9cm x 25cm loaf tin (see note). Place milk in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stir in honey and bicarbonate of soda, then remove from heat and cool.
2. Step 2
   Meanwhile, using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, then beat in eggs, one at a time. By hand, whisk in honey mixture, figs and glace ginger until combined. Sift over flour, spices and 1/2 teaspoon salt, then whisk to combine. Spoon into tin and bake on the bottom shelf of the oven for 50 minutes, covering with baking paper during the last 20 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
3. Step 3
   Cool bread in tin for 10 minutes, then run a spatula around the edge to release bread from the tin before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4. Step 4
   Stir lemon zest and enough lemon juice into icing sugar to form a thick icing, then spread over gingerbread, allowing it to dribble down sides. Leave to set, then serve cut into slices.