Annabel Crabb's Rhubarb Syrup Cake

CAKE

75g raw almonds, skin on

50g stale sourdough (or any other robust bread)

100g (1 cup) almond meal

220g (1 cup) caster sugar

½ teaspoon baking powder

4 eggs

185ml (3/4 cup) vegetable oil

Crème fraiche, whipped cream or thick yoghurt, to serve

RHUBARB and SYRUP

400g rhubarb, as vivid pink as you can find, washed and any laves trimmed off

100g white sugar

Method

Preheat oven to 200 degrees centigrade (180 fan). Grease and line a 20cm cake tin

For the rhubarb, chop the stems into pieces about the size of your middle finger. Arrange in a single layer in a baking dish, then flick over about 80ml (1/3 cup) of water and sprinkle with the sugar. Roast for 10-15 minutes or until soft but still holding its shape.

Scatter the almonds over a baking try and toast in the oven for 10 minutes. Slice the bread as thinly as you can, lay it on another baking tray and place in the oven for about 5 minutes to dry it out. Set aside the rhubarb, almonds and bread to cool.

Take to the dried-out bread with a large knife (or hand the job over to your food processor) and chop (or whizz) to very coarse crumbs. Same goes for the almonds: chop or blitz until you have a rubbly mixture with some pieces up to the size of a small pea. Tip the breadcrumbs and almonds into a large bowl. Stir in the almond meal, sugar and baking powder. Whisk the eggs and oil together, then pour into the dry ingredients and stir to combine.

Transfer the batter to the tin and slide it into the oven, then drop the temperature to 160 degrees centigrade (140 fan) and bake for 45 minutes. When it’s ready, the cake should look temptingly crispy at its edges, and a skewer inserted in the centre should come out clean. Leave to cool.

Meanwhile, drain the syrup from the rhubarb and then – up to an hour or so before serving – use a skewer to poke holes in the cake and slowly pour the syrup all over, giving it time to soak in as you go.

Serve each slice of cake with a substantial log-pile of the baked rhubarb and some crème fraiche, whipped cream or thick yoghurt.

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