Dan Lepard's hazelnut prune cake recipe

This cake has a very soft, moist texture due to the syrup and dried fruit, and a rich, nutty flavour. Good with a glass of chilled sweet wine in the afternoon. 100g unsalted butter, softened 75g golden syrup 100g dark brown sugar 2 medium eggs 100g skinned, roasted and chopped hazelnuts 75g ground almonds 300g chopped prunes 125g plain flour 1 tbsp cocoa 1 tsp ground nutmeg ¾ tsp baking powder Brandy, to finish Line the base and sides of a round, deep 18cm cake tin (or similar) with nonstick baking paper, and heat the oven to 180C (160C fan-assisted)/350F/gas mark 4. Beat the butter, syrup and sugar until light and smooth, beat in the eggs one at a time, until evenly mixed through, then fold in the hazelnuts, almonds and prunes. Sift the flour, cocoa, nutmeg and baking powder directly into the mix and stir through evenly. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin, smooth the top and bake for about 50 minutes, or until a skewer comes out barely clean. Remove from the oven, douse the warm cake with a few tablespoons of brandy as it cools, then leave in the tin until cold. danlepard.com/guardian