Ginger Cake is common street food in Sierra Leone typically enjoyed as a snack. We had it as dessert for our International cuisine meal and it was excellent. Ginger is a common ingredient in Sierra Leone often grown in their subsistence gardens. This recipe calls for fresh and ground ginger.
Ginger cake is just one of the street cakes you will find in Sierra Leone. There are many sweet cakes that are popular like banana fritters, benni cakes which are made with sesame seeds, or ground nut cakes. There is one that is called king or kill driver. The story goes that it is so sweet and heavy that if a driver eats it they will fall into a sugar coma and crash the car.
You will find these street vendors carrying the cakes in plastic tubs on their heads.
Did you know that Sierra Leone was originally established to be a safe haven for freed slaves? This is why it’s capital city is called Freeport.
If you would like more authentic recipes from Sierra Leone to enjoy your ginger cake with, then please check out “Our Journey to Sierra Leone”. There you will find an authentic Cassava leaf stew recipe as well as a ginger beer to wash it down. You will also learn a bit about this West African country.
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Ginger Cake from Sierra Leone
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups flour all-purpose
- 2 Tablespoons ginger root grated
- 2 sticks unsalted butter
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoons confectioners sugar
Instructions
- Grease and flour two bread loaf pans.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
- In large bowl hand mix flour, baking powder, ground ginger, cinnamon and salt.
- In another large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy with a mixer.
- Add in eggs, one at time, the grated ginger root and vanilla into the butter mixture.
- Add the milk, mix in the flour mixture until incorporated.
- Pour 1/2 the batter into a prepared pan and repeat with the other half.
- Bake 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
- Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, and then turn out onto a serving plate.
- Dust with confectioners' sugar before serving
