Wilkins Cake has its day

 

Today is the National Day of Reflection and I’ve been reflecting on when I first started to collate Grandma Abson’s recipes and put them in the book which inspire such interest for me in traditional baking.

 This was one of the first cakes I baked from her collection and everyone who tasted it was quite taken with its simplicity and ease to bake. It was one of the winners at Grandma’s book launch too. I love the idea of a cup of this and a cup of that which takes away the problem of metric translations. 

Wilkins Cake

3 oz (75g) butter

1 cup sugar

2 cups plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ginger

¼ grated nutmeg

1 cup raisins

1 cup water

 Melt butter in a pan. Boil the sugar in water for 3 minutes. When cold, add the flour and the baking powder. Add the spices, salt and raisins. Mix well. Bake for 1 - 1 ¼ hours in a warm oven.  (300F, Mark 3, 150 C)  

I never found out who Wilkins was – but Grandma’s husband was William Lionel so, if it was his nickname, maybe it was his favourite!