Bajan Black Cake

Name: Bajan Black Cake
Prep time: 60 min
Cook time: 180 min
Total time: 240 min
Yield: 16 servings
Cuisine: Barbadian
Ingredients: 500g mixed dried fruits (raisins, currants, prunes, cherries); 2 cups dark rum; 1 cup browning sauce; 2 cups flour; 1 cup brown sugar; 250g butter; 4 eggs; 2 tsp mixed spice; 1 tsp vanilla essence; 1 tsp almond essence; 1 cup stout beer; 2 tsp baking powder; Burnt sugar syrup

Great Cake (BAY-jan BLACK cake)

Rum-Soaked Dark Fruit Cake

⏱ Prep Time Months of maceration plus 4 hours

📈 Difficulty Hard

👥 Servings

🔥 Calories 396 kcal

An intensely rich, dark fruit cake soaked in rum and stout, packed with dried fruits macerated for months, served at Christmas and weddings.

Nutrition & Info

Protein 5.0g

Carbs 58.0g

Fat 16.0g

Protein Carbs Fat

Dietary

vegetarian

Allergen Warnings

⚠ gluten ⚠ eggs ⚠ dairy

Equipment Needed

large cake tin mixing bowl food processor cheesecloth

Presentation Guide

Vessel: cake stand

Garnishes: icing optional, cherry

Accompaniments: rum punch, sorrel drink

Ingredients

500g mixed dried fruits (raisins, currants, prunes, cherries)
2 cups dark rum
1 cup browning sauce
2 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar
250g butter
4 eggs
2 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp almond essence
1 cup stout beer
2 tsp baking powder
Burnt sugar syrup

Instructions

1
Mince dried fruits and soak in rum for at least two weeks, preferably months. Stir occasionally.
2
Cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time.
3
Fold in flour, baking powder, and mixed spice. Add vanilla and almond essence.
4
Stir in the rum-soaked fruits with all their liquid, browning sauce, and stout beer.
5
Pour into a greased and lined cake tin. Bake at 150C for three hours until a skewer comes out clean.
6
While still warm, pour additional rum over the cake. Wrap tightly in cheesecloth and store for at least one week before serving.

💡

Did You Know?

Some Bajan families keep a jar of fruit soaking in rum year-round, adding to it continuously so the fruit macerates for years.

Chef's Notes

Equipment Tips

large cake tin
mixing bowl
food processor
cheesecloth

Garnishing

icing optional, cherry

Accompaniments

rum punch, sorrel drink

The Story Behind Bajan Black Cake

Black cake is the crown jewel of Barbadian celebration baking, derived from the British Christmas pudding tradition but transformed by Caribbean ingredients and rum. The Bajan version is darker and more intense than its British ancestor, thanks to generous amounts of browning sauce and months of fruit maceration in local rum. No Barbadian Christmas or wedding reception is complete without slices of black cake, and family recipes are closely guarded secrets passed through generations.

🕐 Traditionally enjoyed christmas and weddings 📜 Origins: British colonial adapted Barbadian

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