Authentic Jamaican Black Cake Recipes

BLACK CAKE (CARIBBEAN RUM SOAKED FRUIT CAKE)

Steps:

• Wash and dry all fruits. Mix together in a large bowl. Place fruits a little at a time in a food processor, food mill, or ninja blender. Add enough wine to grind fruits to a paste. Repeat process until fruits have been macerated. Fruit mixture should not be too watery. Add 3-4 cups dark rum. Stir and let mixture soak at minimum one week or even one year+. Adding more wine or rum periodically.
• If using store-bought burnt sugar, skip this step. Place sugar in a small saucepan. On low heat turn sugar with a spoon until it begins to caramelize. Once dark brown, add wine and remove from heat. Let cool completely.
• Preheat oven to 275 or 300 degrees F.
• Line 3-8in or 2-9in baking pans with parchment paper. Trim paper and set aside.
• Bring eggs and butter to room temperature.
• Crack eggs into a separate bowl one at a time, Remove little white membrane from each egg (optional). Beat in zests, vanilla, almond, and mixed essence. Set aside.
• In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Set aside.
• In deep mixing bowl or stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until pale. Add eggs a little at a time. Blend well.
• Of the macerated fruit mixture, add 1 1/2 lbs (3 heaping cups) a little at a time, continue blending.
• Add flour mixture a little at a time- fold in with a spatula. Add 1 tbsp burnt sugar at a time until desired color is achieved. If using store bought burnt sugar, 4 tbsp should suffice for a very dark cake. Mix well.
• Pour batter into lined cake pans.
• Bake anywhere from 275-300 degrees F for 80-90 minutes. When cake come out of oven, pour alcohol mixture on top. When cool, cover cake with plastic wrap. Flavor is best after a few days.

JAMAICAN BLACK CAKE

Steps:

• Add the dates, figs, 1 cup of the port, 1 cup of the rum, the almonds, brandied cherries with their liquid, currants, candied orange peel, prunes and dark and golden raisins to a food processor. Process this mixture until the dried fruit is broken down into smaller chunks. Stir in the orange juice. Allow it to soak in the rum for at least 2 hours 30 minutes, but preferably for 2 to 3 days.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 2 cake pans and line them with brown or wax paper.
• In a stand mixer, combine the butter, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, allspice, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, salt, molasses, browning and eggs. Slowly add the rum-soaked fruit to the mixer a little at a time and mix to combine all of the ingredients.
• Divide the cake batter between the prepared cake pans. Bake the cakes in a water bath by filling a large roasting pan halfway up with water and then setting the cake pans inside. Bake for 1 hour 30 minutes.
• Sprinkle the remaining port and rum on top of the cakes and let them cool. These cakes will last for days stored in parchment paper and plastic wrap and for weeks when frozen.