The perfect birthday cake recipe, by our friend Helen Evans.
I first met Helen in 2022, when she introduced me to the delights of galette des rois, which I now seek out whenever I visit Paris in January. In 2023, Helen opened Eric’s, a lovely bakery on Upland Road in East Dulwich. I love visiting, partly for the sunshine-yellow tiles, but mostly for the baking. Helen uses UK-grown wheat, choosing only grains grown through low-input or organic farming methods, something she really cares about. If you haven’t been to Eric’s, it’s well worth a visit, and I’d especially recommend the millionaire’s shortbread.
To help us celebrate our 9th birthday, Helen has created a beautiful Quince, Spelt and Ricotta Cake. A cake for all occasions and enjoyed best with a cup of tea.
Quince, Spelt and Ricotta Cake
Simple and effective, you can make this cake with a variety of fruits - we've made it with blueberries, raspberries and most recently, quince, the queen of aromatic autumnal fruits. We get our ricotta from High Wield Dairy in Sussex, and our quince is normally gifted by our East Dulwich neighbours! Wholemeal spelt gives it a wonderful natural sweetness and nuttiness.
Ingredients:
3 eggs
110g caster sugar
110g light brown sugar
zest of 1 lemon
140g unsalted butter
165g wholegrain spelt flour
8g (approx. 2 teaspoons) baking powder
pinch of salt (approx. 2g)
250g ricotta
4 raw pears or 2 poached quinces
poaching liquid (see below for poaching instructions)
Equipment: 8inch cake tin, lined with baking parchment + cake skewer
Poaching Method (for the quince):
500ml water + 300g granulated sugar + juice of 1 lemon
(you can also add a stick of cinnamon for extra colour and flavour)
1. Bring the water and sugar to a gentle boil.
2. Peel and quarter the quinces, then add them to the syrup (leave the cores in for now). Add the peelings to the syrup too - they will give depth to the final colour. Cover the fruit with a small disc of baking parchment.
3. Return the pot to the heat, and bring to a gentle simmer. Simmer very gently until there is no resistance when you pierce the fruit with a cake skewer. Leave them to cool in the syrup, then cut the cores out and slice to 2mm thickness.
Cake Method:
1. Cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest until light and fluffy.
2. Add the eggs one at a time.
3. Mix together all the remaining dry ingredients, ensuring the baking powder and salt are well-distributed. Fold into the wet ingredients, then add the ricotta in chunks so it marbles through the batter.
4. Pour the batter into the lined tin, and top with the sliced fruit. Arrange in a pleasing pattern, to your liking. You should have enough sliced fruit to completely cover the surface, but don't pile it up too heavily, or the batter may sink in the oven.
5. Bake at 160ºC (fan-assisted) or 180ºC (non fan-assisted) for approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a cake skewer comes out completely clean.
6. Leave it to cool before brushing the sliced fruit with the leftover poaching syrup and/or dusting with icing sugar. Slice and serve. Best enjoyed at room temperature, or warm with a glug of cream/dollop of creme fraiche.
Substitutions: you can easily substitute wholemeal wheat or rye flour for the spelt. You could also switch the lemon to orange zest if you fancied a different citrus flavour.
