Rory O’Connell’s Ginger, Lemon and Turmeric Cake

Rory O' Connell makes the most delicious ginger, lemon & turmeric cake. The defining ingredients at the heart of this cake sounds like a combination of what you might be ingesting from a glass in the form of a tincture first thing in the morning. Well, if it makes you wince at that early hour, I think in this case the reaction will be more pleasant. The cake itself is very straightforward and brightened up with lemon and fresh ginger, the turmeric arrives in a blaze of deep primrose yellow on top in the icing. A sprinkling of finely diced stem ginger is the final gesture to what is an easy but delightful cake. Keeping up with current fashion in cake decoration, you could sprinkle a few bright orange marigold or deep golden dahlia petals over the cake for added pzazz.
This is a cake to be eaten at any time of the day with tea or coffee and also as a dessert cake after lunch or dinner. It is definitely best eaten on the day it is made when it still retains that just baked fresh charm. 

To make the Cake:

1. Preheat oven to 180c.
2. Brush the cake tin with a little melted butter and line the bottom with a disc of parchment paper. Dust the sides of the tins with a little flour and tap the tins to remove any excess.
3. Place the butter, eggs, flour, sugar, lemon zest and ginger in a food processor. Using the pulse button, process the ingredients very briefly to achieve a creamy consistency. This may take as little as twenty seconds. Ensure that all of the flour from the base and sides of the processor are amalgamated evenly into the mixture.
4. Spread the mixture into the lined tin as evenly as possible. Place in the oven and cook for about 25 minutes or until the cake is risen, richly coloured and just barely starting to come away from the edges of the tin. Test that the cake is cooked by inserting a skewer into the cake and retracting it. The skewer should come out of the cake clean.
5. Place the cake still in the tin on a wire rack and allow to cool for 15 minutes before carefully removing from the tin and replacing on the wire rack.

To make the Icing:

1. Place the butter, cream cheese and sieved icing sugar in a bowl. Beat with a wooden spoon until a creamy and fluffy consistency is achieved.
2. Add the turmeric and lemon juice and mix in gently.
3. Chill the icing until you are ready to ice the cake.
4. When the cake has completely cooled, remove the parchment paper and place on a flat serving plate. Spread the icing over the top of the cake achieving a gentle and swirly finish.
5. Scatter the diced stem ginger over the icing as evenly as possible
6. Finally, serve the cake with crème fraiche or softly whipped cream.