This is my second recipe for 'groom's cake' inspired from Jane Austen - and M. Knightley, in particular. It's not the most extravagant but it's the most traditional. Let me explain why.
A perfect gentleman
There is no male character, I think, in English literature who better fits the definition of a gentleman than M. Knightley -brother-in-law to Isabella Woodhouse and landlord of Donwell Abbey, which is a mile away from Highbury. George Knightley is a superior man although rather intolerant with spoilt young ladies, such as Emma. And that's his only fault. His generosity, politeness & intelligence are so distinct throughout the novel that no-one is surprised at the heroine's final choice. Literary criticism sometimes puts M. Knightley together with Edward Fairfax Rochester and Heathcliff, both of whom are portrayed in greyish colours at the start: inflexible, awkward & even cruel or nasty, they are in conflict with the heroines until they realize, discover or confess being in love with them. Others compare M. Knightley with the noble yet proud Fitzwilliam Darcy, who is generally thought to be Jane Austen's finest character (although, in fact, the object of comparison is not M. Darcy from the novel but M. Darcy as created for the 1995 TV series).
Knightley through history
History lovers will be delighted to hear that an English family by the name of Knightley is mentioned in the sources, whose heiress passed away in 1814 - only two years before Emma was published. Their property, called Offchurchbury, had been established in the 11th century but was awarded to Sir Edmund Knightley during the reign of King Henry VIII. The manor is located in Warwickshire and therefore away from Surrey, in which the fictional M. Knightley lives. So it's not possible that Jane Austen used whatever information was known about these people. There is no doubt, however, that Emma's friend was just as noble in origin & status as the historic Knightleys.
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| Emma is being proposed to by M. Knightley |
A perfect gentleman
There is no male character, I think, in English literature who better fits the definition of a gentleman than M. Knightley -brother-in-law to Isabella Woodhouse and landlord of Donwell Abbey, which is a mile away from Highbury. George Knightley is a superior man although rather intolerant with spoilt young ladies, such as Emma. And that's his only fault. His generosity, politeness & intelligence are so distinct throughout the novel that no-one is surprised at the heroine's final choice. Literary criticism sometimes puts M. Knightley together with Edward Fairfax Rochester and Heathcliff, both of whom are portrayed in greyish colours at the start: inflexible, awkward & even cruel or nasty, they are in conflict with the heroines until they realize, discover or confess being in love with them. Others compare M. Knightley with the noble yet proud Fitzwilliam Darcy, who is generally thought to be Jane Austen's finest character (although, in fact, the object of comparison is not M. Darcy from the novel but M. Darcy as created for the 1995 TV series).
Knightley through history
History lovers will be delighted to hear that an English family by the name of Knightley is mentioned in the sources, whose heiress passed away in 1814 - only two years before Emma was published. Their property, called Offchurchbury, had been established in the 11th century but was awarded to Sir Edmund Knightley during the reign of King Henry VIII. The manor is located in Warwickshire and therefore away from Surrey, in which the fictional M. Knightley lives. So it's not possible that Jane Austen used whatever information was known about these people. There is no doubt, however, that Emma's friend was just as noble in origin & status as the historic Knightleys.
_p4.280_-_Offchurchbury%2C_Warwickshire.jpg/1280px-Neale(1818)_p4.280_-_Offchurchbury%2C_Warwickshire.jpg) |
| Property of the real Knightleys |
The wedding at Donwell Abbey
Although the romance between Emma and George Knightley covers only a few pages at the end, I'm sure the novel would be more complete with a description of their wedding. However, there is nothing -except this last paragraph: "The wedding was very much like other weddings, where the parties have no taste for finery and parade; and Mrs Elton, from the particulars detailed by her husband, thought it all extremely shabby, and very inferior to her own. 'Very little satin, very few lace veils; a most pitiful business! Selina would stare when she heard of it.' But, in spite of these deficiencies, the wishes, the hopes, the confidence, the predictions of the small band of true friends who witnessed the ceremony, were fully answered in the perfect happiness of the union." As for the cake (or cakes) served, we are left alone to fill the gaps. No doubt M. Knightley's cook would make something traditional, according to his/her master's disposition who had not changed a thing in Donwell Abbey.
Jacobean wedding-cake
Although the romance between Emma and George Knightley covers only a few pages at the end, I'm sure the novel would be more complete with a description of their wedding. However, there is nothing -except this last paragraph: "The wedding was very much like other weddings, where the parties have no taste for finery and parade; and Mrs Elton, from the particulars detailed by her husband, thought it all extremely shabby, and very inferior to her own. 'Very little satin, very few lace veils; a most pitiful business! Selina would stare when she heard of it.' But, in spite of these deficiencies, the wishes, the hopes, the confidence, the predictions of the small band of true friends who witnessed the ceremony, were fully answered in the perfect happiness of the union." As for the cake (or cakes) served, we are left alone to fill the gaps. No doubt M. Knightley's cook would make something traditional, according to his/her master's disposition who had not changed a thing in Donwell Abbey.
Jacobean wedding-cake
The first report on English wedding-cake is dated from 1655 and points at Banbury cake (which, I'm afraid wasn't served during Sir Edmund's lifetime). Looking for digitized recipes, I came across The English Huswife by Gervase Markham: this was probably the go-to manual for cooking up a feast throughout the 17th century. A practical guide for housekeeping first published in 1615, it also featured recipes for special occasions. Here is what it says about Banbury cake: "To make a very good Banbury Cake, take 4. pounds of Currants, and wash and picke them very cleane, and drie them in a clothe : then take three egges and put one yelke, and beate them, and straine them with good barme, putting thereto Cloues, Mace, Cinamon, and Nutmegges; then take pinte of creame and as much mornings milke and set it one the fire till the colde bee taken away; then take flower and put in good store of colde butter and suger, then put in your egges, barme and meale and worke them all together an houre or more; then save a part of the Past, and the rest breake in peeces and worke in your Currants; which done, mount your Cake of which quantity you please; And then with that Past which hath not any Currants, couer it very thin both vnderneath and a loft. And so bake it according to the bignesse."
To barm or not to barm?
To barm or not to barm?
If making the cake exactly as directed by The English Huswife is your goal, you have to look for barm -the scum produced on top of a fermenting liquid, such as beer or wine. Until the 18th century, bakers would use this 'yeast' for leavening their dough. If you can't find any in the market, there is a number of alternatives. Of course, unless you make the starter with only barm & yolk, the cake will never taste exactly as the Jacobean version. But if you don't care much about this, here is what you can do:
Adapting Banbury cake
In contrast with modern versions of the recipe, The English Huswife gives directions for a single cake. Apart from that, you have to make a choice on the following issues:
Choosing ingredients. Wholemeal flour and unrefined sugar were regularly used for baked goods until the second half of the 19th century so it's best not to replace them. If these are used alone, the finished cake will be quite different from modern versions with sfogliata. I propose a combination of spelt flours and light brown sugar. Note that authors like Hannah Glasse and Elizabeth Raffald, whose recipes were popular in Jane Austen's time, would beat sugar to powder in a mortar. As for spelt, it's probably the closest equivalent to the species of wheat that was available in the Jacobean era.
Filling the dough. Banbury cakes are nowadays like individual pies, filled with a moderate amount of raisins to which butter, honey and sometimes liquor is added. The cakes are then slashed and placed in the oven. The 17th century recipe, however, goes for a single cake that's layered in a different way: one quarter of the dough is placed at the bottom of the pan, covered by two quarters of the dough into which the raisins are kneaded, and topped with the last quarter of dough. This is exactly how Gervase Markham said to arrange the filling. Without adding sugar, butter, or anything else.
How to bake the cake. Medieval, Renaissance & Early Modern recipes seldom provide details about important matters such as this. Since Banbury cake is filled with a large amount of fruit, you must take care to bake the dough thoroughly, either by choosing a relatively flat shape or by prolonging baking time. (I took up the second option.) Also, you must bake the cake in relatively low temperatures after the first 20 minutes -though not lower than 180C, which is the minimum for yeasted breads (unless, of course, you choose a different leavener).
GROOM'S CAKE FOR M. KNIGHTLEY
To make this version of Banbury cake, I divided Gervase Markham's recipe by 4. He only gave hints on the amount of currants, to which I had to adjust the rest of the ingredients based on personal experience. The dough was shaped into a ball like panettone and baked in a 20cm round pan. To bake the cake thoroughly in an hour, which is the maximum time for yeasted breads, you'd better use a larger pan. If you do, the cake will be flatter though not so flat as modern (Branbury) cakes.
I n g r e d i e n t s
275g wholemeal spelt flour
275g strong bread flour (or white spelt flour)
1 sachet (=7g) dried yeast
1tsp mixed spices
a pinch of salt
150ml cream
150ml milk
150g butter
150g light brown sugar
2 eggs
- Make a sponge with beer & yolk (enhanced with baker's yeast). Let stand for 30 minutes, add the rest of the ingredients and go on with the kneading. Fermented hops might give your Branbury cake a taste of the past but you should know that added liquor slows the rising process.
- Use wild yeast, provided you're familiar with making sourdough bread. If not, you can mix levain with a small amount of baker's yeast. (Perhaps these are the nearest alternatives to the original leavener by Gervase Markham.)
- Go for baker's yeast alone. Either you cream fresh yeast with a little bit of milk, enrich with yolk and leave to bubble, which is the proper method for traditional yeasted breads like panettone. Or you omit the sponge and mix fresh or dried yeast into the rest of the ingredients. (This is the way I make Banbury cake for now.)
- Replace barm & yolk with baking soda, cream of tartar -or both (ie. baking powder). This will save you from proofing the dough, which Gervase Markham's version doesn't require either.
- Omit the leavener by using tart dough. Whether you choose pâte brisée or the much more adaptable sfogliata featured in modern versions is up to you. The currants will be placed between two sheets of dough, then wrapped and fastened with some egg yolk.
Adapting Banbury cake
In contrast with modern versions of the recipe, The English Huswife gives directions for a single cake. Apart from that, you have to make a choice on the following issues:
Choosing ingredients. Wholemeal flour and unrefined sugar were regularly used for baked goods until the second half of the 19th century so it's best not to replace them. If these are used alone, the finished cake will be quite different from modern versions with sfogliata. I propose a combination of spelt flours and light brown sugar. Note that authors like Hannah Glasse and Elizabeth Raffald, whose recipes were popular in Jane Austen's time, would beat sugar to powder in a mortar. As for spelt, it's probably the closest equivalent to the species of wheat that was available in the Jacobean era.
Filling the dough. Banbury cakes are nowadays like individual pies, filled with a moderate amount of raisins to which butter, honey and sometimes liquor is added. The cakes are then slashed and placed in the oven. The 17th century recipe, however, goes for a single cake that's layered in a different way: one quarter of the dough is placed at the bottom of the pan, covered by two quarters of the dough into which the raisins are kneaded, and topped with the last quarter of dough. This is exactly how Gervase Markham said to arrange the filling. Without adding sugar, butter, or anything else.
How to bake the cake. Medieval, Renaissance & Early Modern recipes seldom provide details about important matters such as this. Since Banbury cake is filled with a large amount of fruit, you must take care to bake the dough thoroughly, either by choosing a relatively flat shape or by prolonging baking time. (I took up the second option.) Also, you must bake the cake in relatively low temperatures after the first 20 minutes -though not lower than 180C, which is the minimum for yeasted breads (unless, of course, you choose a different leavener).
GROOM'S CAKE FOR M. KNIGHTLEY
To make this version of Banbury cake, I divided Gervase Markham's recipe by 4. He only gave hints on the amount of currants, to which I had to adjust the rest of the ingredients based on personal experience. The dough was shaped into a ball like panettone and baked in a 20cm round pan. To bake the cake thoroughly in an hour, which is the maximum time for yeasted breads, you'd better use a larger pan. If you do, the cake will be flatter though not so flat as modern (Branbury) cakes.
I n g r e d i e n t s
275g wholemeal spelt flour
275g strong bread flour (or white spelt flour)
1 sachet (=7g) dried yeast
1tsp mixed spices
a pinch of salt
150ml cream
150ml milk
150g butter
150g light brown sugar
2 eggs
500g currants, floured
M e t h o d
1. Sift the flours, yeast, spices and salt together. 2. Gently heat the cream, milk, butter & sugar until lukewarm. Add 1 egg + 1 yolk and stir. Remove the mixture from the heat when the temperature reaches 37-38C. 3. Combine with the dry ingredients in a bowl, using a spoon. Knead lightly in there, cover and wait for 30 minutes. 4. Transfer the dough on a floured surface and knead by hand for 10-15 minutes. Return to the bowl, cover and proof for 2-3 hours or until doubled in bulk. 5. Knock back and proof for another 1-1,5 hours. 6. Divide into four quarters. In the mean time, set the oven to 220C. 7. Roll one quarter of the dough thin enough to fit your pan that you must line with greased bakery paper (the sides included). Knead the currants into the other two quarters of dough. Shape into a ball, and place at the centre of the first layer. Roll the last quarter of dough thin, place on top of the second layer, and wrap everything into a larger ball. Seal the edges. Flatten the dough so that it fits your pan. 8. Let stand for 30-45 minutes, covered with a towel. 9. Lightly beat 1/2 of the second egg white. Brush the surface of your cake. Place under the middle rack of the oven and bake for 20 minutes. 10. Lower the heat to 190C, cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15 minutes. 11. Unmold the cake. Transfer onto a wire rack that you will place on a baking sheet. Return to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes, covered with aluminum foil. 12. Remove only after you make sure the centre is baked through, using a skewer. Wait for 5 minutes, then slide the bakery paper from under the cake and leave to cool for several hours.
N o t e
For the optional glazing (as shown above), beat the rest of the egg white stiff, gradually adding 2tbsp powdered sugar. Brush the cake all over, 10 minutes after you have removed the mold. Lower the oven temperature to 160C and bake uncovered until the cake is done.
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