Dutch Love Cake

18 oz. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
14 oz. brown sugar
1 tsp. ground clove
1 tsp. cardamom or nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. cacao
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
16 fl. oz. milk
4 oz. candied peel variety
1 oz. candied cherries
2 oz. raisins
3-1/2 oz. icing sugar
1 tsp. kirsch

Directions:

Combine flour and baking powder in a tall bowl. Mix in the salt, brown sugar and milk, clove, cardamom, ginger, and cacao and knead it into a cohesive dough. Wash the raisins and pat them dry. Put two tablespoons of candied peel, one tablespoon of raisins and one tablespoon of candied cherries to the side and mix in all the remainder. Put the dough into a greased, (heart-shaped) form and bake for about 90 minutes into a pre-heated oven at 175ºC/340ºF. Take the cake out, let it settle for about five minutes, remove the form and allow the ‘lieverdje’ to cool on a cake rack.

Coat the top of the cake with a glaze made the following way: mix a few drops of kirsch (or water) into the icing sugar. Garnish the glaze with the left-over candied peel, raisings and cherries.

Comments from angel :

A ‘lieverdje’ is the Dutch diminutive of ‘lieverd’, indeed: sweetheart in all its meanings. As such it is akin to the Latin word ‘libido’. However, the diminutive also has gotten a mildly derisive meaning: a ‘gamin,’ a playfully mischievous street urchin. In Amsterdam

User Reviews:

I'm intrigued, so much so I'm making it tomorrow, though I'm intrigued why you say it takes a day to make?

Submitted by slowthinker on November 01, 2003

Add your review of this recipe.