Honey Beer Cake

It has been a while since my trip to the States. While I was there I have had the privilege to get to meet my counterparts at work and people who like me have left our home country to be overseas. While staying over at one of theirs I came across Booze Cakes, a cookbook dedicated to making cakes using alcohol. While this might raise a few eyebrows in the UK, this is perhaps considered normal amongst Americans. In any case, within the book was a recipe that would come in useful in running down my leftover Basics lager, while also providing the British another way to enjoy what is by far their most popular form of alcohol - beer.

I have decided to make a few changes to the recipe found in the book, adding Sainsbury's Basics sultanas. Having never tried these sultanas before I cannot offer much information on them, so I went to do a bit of research. It appears that sultanas actually refer more to a grape variety, although they are nowadays commonly accepted to be the raisin derived from the grape. Known for their sweetness, sultanas are also also known as the threeway grape to their triple use in winemaking, raisins, and being served as table grapes. In light of this information perhaps a future feature on wine cake might be appropriate.

But for now, let's begin. Mix together 430g of Basics plain flour with about 3 teaspoons of Bicarbonate of Soda, a bit of salt and some cinnamon, and set aside.

Cream one stick of Sainsbury's Basics butter and sugar until fluffy. Add four eggs before adding 10 tablespoons of Basics honey.

Pour in the flour mixture and beer, alternating between the two. Fold in the sultanas and bake at 165 degrees Celsius for 45 minutes, or until a knife can be cleanly inserted and taken out.

Please don't do as I have done and use the Pyrex bowl that you mixed the cake batter in for baking. Transfer the lot into a shallow tray instead, to allow the cake to cook quicker. It also helps with the washing up as the cooked cake batter on the surface around the inside of the bowl is now harder to remove.

Description	Price per Unit	No. of servings	Trade-up Premium	Trade-up Benefits
Sultanas	£0.99	500g	+£0.55	Not known