“This stunning yet effortless trifle is the perfect show-stopper dessert for Christmas, and you don’t need to tell anybody how easy it was to put together!” - Lucy Nunes
RECIPE NOTE: If baking ginger isn’t available, you can use finely chopped crystallised ginger instead. You can also use a festive cookie cutter to cut shapes from this dough, re-rolling offcuts to produce as many as possible. Eight-centimetre shapes will produce approximately 24 biscuits.
GINGERBREAD LAYER CAKE WITH PRESERVED GINGER SYRUP
SERVES 12
Begin this recipe a day ahead.
You’ll need 2 x 18cm round cake pans.
200g unsalted butter, chopped, at room temperature
½ cup (110g) white sugar
¼ cup (60g) firmly packed brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature, lightly beaten
⅓ cup (125g) molasses
2 tsp vanilla bean paste
2 ¼ cups (335g) plain flour
3 tsp each ground ginger and ground cinnamon
2 tsp each mixed spice and baking powder
¾ cup (180ml) buttermilk
Eucalyptus leaves, to decorate (see notes)
PRESERVED GINGER SYRUP
500g fresh ginger, peeled
2 cups (440g) caster sugar
MASCARPONE ICING
500g mascarpone
600ml thickened cream
½ cup (60g) pure icing sugar, sifted
For the preserved ginger syrup, use a large knife or mandoline to thinly slice the ginger lengthways into 2mm-thick long strips. Place in a large saucepan and cover with 12 cups (3L) cold water. Bring to the boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium and simmer, partially covered and stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes or until ginger is just tender when pierced with a toothpick. Drain, reserving ginger and 4 cups (1L) of ginger water.
Place the caster sugar and reserved ginger water in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer, stirring constantly, until the sugar has dissolved. Add the ginger and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 40 minutes or until ginger is softened and light golden in colour and liquid is reduced and
