No-Bake Advocaat and Ginger Cake

I have a bit of a weakness for this sort of cake, which is essentially an assembly–job number, a construction of alternate layers of a rich, boozy cream and some storebought sponge or other. The thing is, I find layering up — whether it’s lasagna, tiramisù or trifle — both calming and celebratory. It can be done without stress, but while building a sense of occasion.

Here the layers comprise a confection of cream and mascarpone, seasonally spiked with Advocaat, full of crystallised ginger, figs and nuts, and that essential component of Christmas: gingerbread. Now, there are many types of gingerbread, but for this particular cake you need to get the dark, sticky sort — always my first choice — rather in the style of a Jamaica ginger cake. And you need quite a lot of it, not least because its squodgy texture means that as you cut it, the cake compresses into divinely dense slices, more the shape of bricks, all the better to build with.

If you wanted to make the gingerbread yourself, you could of course: the recipe for Fresh Gingerbread with Lemon Icing (though you won’t need the icing) will give you exactly what you need. There is a way of making an alcohol-free version — substitute the 200ml Advocaat with 300ml ready-made custard/crème anglaise from a tub — but it doesn’t quite have the depth of the real thing, so you might consider adding a drop or two of rum flavouring.

Just so that you’re aware, you do need to get on with this a day before you want to eat it.

For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.

I have a bit of a weakness for this sort of cake, which is essentially an assembly–job number, a construction of alternate layers of a rich, boozy cream and some storebought sponge or other. The thing is, I find layering up — whether it’s lasagna, tiramisù or trifle — both calming and celebratory. It can be done without stress, but while building a sense of occasion.

Here the layers comprise a confection of cream and mascarpone, seasonally spiked with Advocaat, full of crystallised ginger, figs and nuts, and that essential component of Christmas: gingerbread. Now, there are many types of gingerbread, but for this particular cake you need to get the dark, sticky sort — always my first choice — rather in the style of a Jamaica ginger cake. And you need quite a lot of it, not least because its squodgy texture means that as you cut it, the cake compresses into divinely dense slices, more the shape of bricks, all the better to build with.

If you wanted to make the gingerbread yourself, you could of course: the recipe for Fresh Gingerbread with Lemon Icing (though you won’t need the icing) will give you exactly what you need. There is a way of making an alcohol-free version — substitute the 200ml Advocaat with 300ml ready-made custard/crème anglaise from a tub — but it doesn’t quite have the depth of the real thing, so you might consider adding a drop or two of rum flavouring.

Just so that you’re aware, you do need to get on with this a day before you want to eat it.

For US cup measures, use the toggle at the top of the ingredients list.