This recipe was submitted by AABA member Susan Langley. It originally appeared in our January 2015 Newsletter.

Ingredients

• 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. ginger
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• Rind of 2 large lemons – finely grated
• 1 T. dark or light rum or Cognac
• 4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 3/4 cup honey
• 3/4 cup sweet orange (ginger also works)
• marmalade
• 2 eggs

Technique

Adjust a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 350F. Butter a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan, dust all over with fine, dry bread crumbs, and shake out the excess. Set aside.

Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, ginger, and nutmeg. Set aside.

Mix the lemon rind and the rum/cognac and let stand.

In large bowl of electric mixer, cream the butter. Add honey and beat to mix. Mix in marmalade. On low speed add half the dry ingredients, scraping bowl and beating only to mix. Then mix in the eggs one at a time, and then the remaining dry ingredients. Remove from mixer and stir in lemon rind and rum/cognac.

Turn into prepared pan and smooth the top.

Bake for 1 hour, until top feels semi-firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. If loaf begins to brown too much during baking, cover loosely with foil.

Cool in the pan for 10-15 minutes. Cover with a rack, turn pan over with rack, remove pan, and leave loaf upside down to cool.

Frosting

• ¼ lb. butter
• ¼ lb. shortening
• 1.1 lbs confectioner’s (icing) sugar
• ½ tsp. vanilla extract
• ½ tsp almond extract
• ½ small can evaporated milk (approx. 2.5 oz.)

Mix well. Top with crystalized ginger (chopped) and granulated honey.