Spiced Guinness Cake

   For Father's Day I made my Grandad this loaf cake. As a fan of fruit cake I thought he'd enjoy this as sultanas are soaked in Guinness. The recipe is from The Clandestine Cake Club Cookbook, and asks for light ale, but Guinness works just as well.

Spiced Guinness Cake
(Serves 12)
     350ml light ale/Guinness
     100g sultanas
     2 tbsp honey
     200g dark muscovado sugar
     400g wholemeal flour
     1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
     1 tsp ground cinnamon
     1/2 tsp ground cloves

• Mix the Guinness with the sultanas and leave for a couple of hours for the fruit to plump up a little and absorb some of the flavour.
• Heat the oven to 190 degrees. Grease and line the base and sides of a 900g loaf tin leaving a little of the paper above the rim to allow for any rising.
• Gently warm the honey and add to the Guinness and sultanas along with the sugar, stirring until all the sugar has dissolved.
• Mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl and then pour in the Guinness mixture. Stir until thoroughly combined into a thick batter.
• Pour the mixture into the tin, spreading it evenly. Bake in the oven for 40-45 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin completely before turning out.

This cake can be kept in an airtight container for up to a week.