Yummy Malaysiana: I baked: Madeira Cake

I baked: Madeira Cake

Hubby once told me that one of his favorite cakes as a child was Madeira cake. He had fond memories of visiting his grandmother at the weekend as she would bake Madeira cake for her visitors afternoon tea. Since I had some free time this week, I decided to bake a Madeira cake for him. As he took his first bite, I watched for his reaction - and I was glad that he enjoyed it. He commented that it was "just as good as my grandmother's". :)

For me, Madeira cake is a cross between a sponge cake and a butter cake. It has a firm and dense texture, but at the same time buttery and light. The exterior crust has a nice caramelised finish. Madeira Cake is often mistaken as originating from Madeira Islands in Portugal, but it is in fact British. It was named after the Madeira wine, which was popular at England at that time and was traditionally served with the dish. These days, it is more common to serve Madeira cake with tea.

Madeira Cake

Preparation time: 20 - 25 mins

Cooking time: 1 - 1 1/4 hour

Serves 12

Ingredients

225g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

225g butter or margarine, at room temperature

225g caster sugar

grated rind of 1 lemon

1 tsp vanilla essence

4 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 170C. Grease a 9 x 5 inch (23 x 13 cm) loaf tin.

2. Sift the flour and baking powder into a small bowl and set aside.

3. With an electric mixer, cream the butter or margarine, adding the sugar 2 tbsp at a time, until light and fluffy. Stir in the lemon rind and vanilla essence.

4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition.

5. Add the flour mixture and stir with a wooden spatula until just combined.

6. Pour cake mixture into the tin and tap lightly. Bake until a metal skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean, about 1 1/4 hours (Ours was ready in 1 hour, so do check doneness with a skewer).