Spiced Mango Layer Cake
- For the mango curd
- 4 egg yolks
- 200g mango, about 1 mango, puréed
- 60g golden caster sugar
- 125g unsalted butter
- For the sponge
- 250g unsalted butter, room temperature
- 160g golden caster sugar
- 120g light soft brown sugar
- 80g clear heather honey
- 5 large eggs
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla paste
- 450g plain flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 4 tbsp mango kefir
- 150g mango, diced
- For the syrup
- 175g golden caster sugar
- 3 tbsp Drambuie Honeyed Liqueur
- For the cream cheese frosting
- 200g unsalted butter, softened
- 200g soft cheese
- 400g icing sugar, sifted
- 2 tsp vanilla paste
- 120ml Drambuie Honeyed Liqueur
1. Start by making the mango curd for the filling. Whisk the eggs, sugar and mango purée together in a heavy-based pan and heat very gently, stirring continuously until the mixture thickens. Don’t allow the mixture to become too hot otherwise the eggs will scramble. Once the sugar has dissolved, add the cubed butter a bit at a time, and continue to stir until it has all melted and the mixture coats the back of a wooden spoon. Run your finger down the back of the spoon and if the line stays it is ready. Pour into a jug and set aside to cool. You could store in the fridge overnight, or even pour into a hot sterilised jar to cool and store in the fridge well in advance.
2. Preheat the oven to 160ºC / 140º fan / gas mark 3. Grease and line 3 x 20cm cake tins with greaseproof paper. Finely dice the mango.
3. In a large bowl, soften the butter then beat in the sugars and honey until well combined. Beat in the eggs and the vanilla pasta, then fold in the flour, baking powder and spices. Stir through the mango kefir, adding a little more if the mixture seems too thick. Fold through the diced mango.
4. Divide amongst the tins then bake in the oven for 25 minutes until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Meanwhile, make the syrup. Dissolve the sugar in 200ml water over a low heat then bring to the boil and simmer for five minutes.
5. When the cakes are cooked remove from the oven then poke holes with a skewer all over the cake. Pour the syrup over the sponges whilst still warm. Leave in the tins for 20 minutes to cool then leave to cool completely on a cooling rack. The sponges can be made a day in advance and stored in an airtight tin.
6. To decorate the cake, beat together the butter, soft cheese, icing sugar, vanilla extract and Drambuie Honeyed Liqueur, until smooth. Spread two of the cakes with a layer of the mango curd. Sandwich one on top of the other then top with the remaining plain cake. Use the frosting to ice the top of the cake using a palette knife to swirl through more mango curd.
