ginger, cardamom & pomegranate syrup cake

Pomegranates are in season at the moment (2 for $2.50 at the markets!) and they are a fantastic crunchy addition to savoury or sweet dishes. They are also beautiful to look at! I think they look like little rubies.

Anyway, I saw this recipe in the latest donna hay magazine and knew it would be amazing! Elise and I taste tested it today and this was confirmed :)

ginger, cardamom & pomegranate syrup cake

1 cup (250ml) buttermilk *

2 eggs

1&1/3 cups (235g) dark brown sugar

1 tablespoon pomegranate molasses **

1/2 cup (175g) treacle (I used golden syrup)

100g butter, melted

1 tablespoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cardomom

3 cups (450g) plain flour

1 teaspoon bicarbonate of (baking) soda

2 pomegranates, seeds and juice removed and reserved ***

3/4 cup (165g) caster sugar

Preheat oven 160ºC. Place the buttermilk, eggs, brown sugar, molasses, treacle and melted butter in a bowl and whisk to combine. Add the ginger, cardamom, flour and bicarbonate of soda and whisk to combine. Pour into a lightly greased 24cm-round cake tin lined with non-stick baking paper. Bake for 1 hour or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Place the pomegranate juice and caster sugar in a bowl and mix to combine. Pour over the cake and allow to cool completely in the tin. Remove cake from tin and sprinkle with the pomegranate seeds to serve.

* To make buttermilk just add one tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice to 1 cup of milk

** I bought this very cheaply from A1 bakery on Sydney Road in Brunswick. Middle Eastern supermarkets stock it, or you could probably getting it from a fancy pants deli for double the price.
*** Pomegrantates are messy, so don't wear good clothes...Roll them on the bench to loosen the seeds from the membrane. Then cut them in half and squeeze them into a bowl to release the seeds and juice.