Black Cake - A Love Affair

Ever since I read Laurie Colwins passage on Black Cake, I have been slightly obsessed.

I love fruit cake - not the crappy dry kind with the burning awful cheap liquor taste and the frightening bits of bright green and red candies studded throughout

But I will eat almost every other kind of cake/fruit/alcohol combination.

I had lovely fruited tea loaf in Waterford, white fruitcake from Texas, rum cake in Barbados, fig cake from Croatia, if it's fruit and alcohol bound in batter, I will try it.

So the idea of a gorgeous black damp rummy fruity cake made me both drool and then want to read every recipe Colwin put on paper.

This past Christmas I started my fruit in November. I made one gi-normous 10 pound cake(12" round) that disappeared in about one minute. And about 6 little loaves, 5 of which disappeared equally quickly. I kept one to see how it age.s

I've already started my fruit for Christmas 2007. I am so excited

Comments

Chris said…
I love Laurie Colwins cookbooks. I attempted the black cake a few years ago, but didn't have the burnt sugar essence, and it was a disaster. I'm guessing it's now available on-line somewhere. Is that what you used? I'd love to hear the details. It's not too late for me to start the fruit for next Christmas! Chris
March 14, 2008 at 1:25 PM
Annabelle B. said…
Hi Chris - I actually found several different kinds of Burnt Sugar essence at Tropical Foods here in Boston.

Are you in Massachusetts? I can tell you which shops I've seen it in, or I can mail you some. I found that the type in the bottle was preferable to the kind in the jar. I forget the names, but know it by sight.

Also remember the recipe in her book is a little loosey-goosey so I sort of use it as a guideline.

Send me an email if you need burnt sugar mailed to you. It would be a major shame if you could not enjoy the rich dark deliciousness of black cake!

LVS
March 14, 2008 at 6:32 PM
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