Ingredients

This is the perfect compliment to the preceding apricot and almond cake. While that was light, fruity and fun, this cake is dark and brooding, with the dense and gooey molasses mixing with the rich and piercing flavor of ginger to give it just the right spin. We added some homemade whipped cream to the top in a generous dollop that accentuated its own contrast with the other. 

Preparation

Line a 9 inch cake tin with greaseproof or baking paper. Heat oven to 350°F. I'm switching back and forth from the metric system to keep you on your toes. Math is important. In a large mixing bowl, mix molasses, sugar and oil. In another bowl, sift together the flour, cinnamon, cloves, and black pepper. In a small saucepan, bring the water to a boil and stir in the baking soda, and add to the first bowl with the molasses mixture. Stir in the ginger, and then slowly whisk in the second bowl of dry ingredients into the molasses mixture. Add the eggs, too. Mix thoroughly, and then transfer to the cake tin. Bake for an hour, which gives you time to bake that previous cake too, and maybe have some tea. Maybe pet a dog. Try not to have the dog drool in your tea; this is important. I made that mistake. Remove, and perhaps dress with a bit of powdered sugar. It shows up quite nicely against the black cake, so if you have a manner of printing out a design in the powdered sugar, this is a good opportunity. See the above whipped cream suggestion.