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RCI-BR.004.0089.001

Madeira Honey Cake

Portugal | Cake This is the recipe for the traditional , usually made on Christmas but also all yea

Prep40 min
Cook30 min
Total70 min
Servings4
Difficultyadvanced

Ingredients

  • (250 g) bread dough from the baker's shop
    9 ounces
  • (2.5 kg) flour
    90 ounces
  • (1 kg) sugar
    35 ounces
  • (750 g) banha
    this is pork fat
    26 ounces
  • (500 g) butter
    17 ounces
  • (25 g) erva-doce
    this is anise herbs, mashed and sifted
    1 ounce
  • .75 ounce (50 g) canela (cinnamon)
    1 unit
  • (25 g) cravinho da India
    (cloves in powder form)
    1 ounce
  • (500 g) walnut
    cut into halves
    17 ounces
  • (250 g) ground almonds
    9 ounces
  • .75 ounce (50 g) candied lemon peel
    cut into cubes
    1 unit
  • (1.8 l) pure honey
    60 ounces
  • of baking soda
    dissolved in the wine
    5 tablespoons
  • of Madeira wine
    1 cup
  • juice and zest of 4 oranges
    1 unit

Method

1
One day before making the cake, buy the bread-dough at the baker's shop, sprinkle a little bit of flour on the dough, put it in a towel and keep it in a warm place until the next day.
2
Put the baking soda into the Madeira wine, dissolve. In a pan warm up the honey, mix the butter and pork fat (if not available, just use butter), dissolve. Let this mixture cool.
3
Sift flour into a bowl, mix in the sugar, make a well and put the bread dough into it. Now work the flour-sugar mixture into the bread dough. As soon as this is well joined, start to incorporate little by little the (tepid) honey-fat mixture. Add some of the candied lemon peel, as well as the Madeira wine, orange juice and orange zest, anise, cinnamon, and cloves.
4
Incorporate and knead thoroughly until the dough doesn't stick to the bowl. Cover the dough with a towel and put it in a warm spot. Keep it in a warm place for 3-4 days.
5
Divide the dough into parts of 250g or 500g or 750 g, depending on the pans to put into the oven. This cake is made in wide, round pans which are rather low. Before going into the oven, the cake is decorated with half-walnuts, sliced almonds and the rest of the candied lemon peel.
6
Grease the baking pans. Bake about 50 minutes 355 °F (180 °C). Let cool down before taking it out of the baking pan.