Marsala and fig cake with poached quince syrup

Marsala & fig cake with poached quince syrup

The perfect hearty Christmas dessert.

PREP TIME 20 minutes | COOK TIME 4.5 hours | SERVES 8 

INGREDIENTS

Poached quince 

• 5 medium quinces 
• 4 ½ cups caster sugar 
• 3 cups water 
• 2 cups rosé wine 
• 2 vanilla beans, split lengthways (or 10ml vanilla extract)

Marsala cake

• 250 g soft dried figs, finely chopped 
• ½ cup marsala 
• 125 g butter, softened 
• 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 
• 2 eggs 
• 150 g self-raising flour 
• 75 g plain flour 
• ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda 
• ½ cup sour cream

METHOD

For the poached quince

WASH quince, pat dry. Peel quince; reserve half the peel. Quarter quince; do not core.   

COMBINE sugar, the water, wine and vanilla in a large cast iron casserole or saucepan with a tight-fitting lid; stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. 

ADD quince and reserved peel, bring to the boil; cover surface with a piece of baking paper, then cover tightly with foil or a lid. Make sure the quince is submerged in the liquid; you may need to place an upturned plate on top of the quince. 

REDUCE heat to a gentle simmer; cook 3 ¼ hours or until the quince is tender and a deep-red colour. Cool quince in syrup. 

STRAIN poached quince through a fine sieve over a bowl; reserve syrup. 

REMOVE core from quince; cut each quarter in half lengthways, if you like. 

PLACE quince wedges on a plate; refrigerate until needed. Discard peelings and vanilla. 

PLACE 2 cups of the reserved syrup in a medium heavy-based saucepan over medium heat; bring to the boil. Boil for 15 minutes or until the syrup has thickened. Cool.

For the cake

GREASE a deep 22cm bundt cake pan well. 

TO prepare dried figs, cut off and discard the hard tops, then thinly slice figs. Combine fig and marsala in a small saucepan; bring to the boil. Cool for 15 minutes. Blend or process fig mixture until it forms a smooth paste.

PREHEAT the oven to 160°C. 

BEAT butter and brown sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. 

BEAT in eggs, one at a time. Transfer mixture to a large bowl; stir in sifted flours and bicarb, then sour cream.  

STIR fig paste into cake mixture. Spread batter into the pan; smooth the surface. 

BAKE cake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted in the centre, avoiding any cracks, comes out clean. Leave the cake in the pan for 5 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool. 

SERVE cake with poached quince, drizzled with the reduced syrup.

FOOD TEAM TIP: Cooking times for quince can vary between types, with some needing a little longer cooking to achieve a red hue. Leftover syrup can be served over ice-cream or used in fruity mixed drinks or added to soda water. The top of your cake may crack; this is normal for cakes cooked in bundt pans due to the small surface area. However, once the cake is turned out of the pan, the top of the cake becomes the base, hiding any cracks that may appear. 

Print Recipe

Marsala and fig cake with poached quince syrup

Serves: 8

Prep Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 4.5 hours

Ingredients

• Poached quince 
• 5 medium quinces 
• 4 ½ cups caster sugar 
• 3 cups water 
• 2 cups rosé wine 
• 2 vanilla beans, split lengthways (or 10ml vanilla extract)
• Masala cake
• 250 g soft dried figs, finely chopped 
• ½cup marsala 
• 125 g butter, softened 
• 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar 
• 2 eggs 
• 150 g self-raising flour 
• 75 g plain flour 
• ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda 
• ½ cup sour cream

Instructions

For the poached quince

1

Wash quince, pat dry. Peel quince; reserve half the peel. Quarter quince; do not core.

2

Combine sugar, the water, wine and vanilla in a large cast iron casserole or saucepan with a tight-fitting lid; stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. 

3

Add quince and reserved peel, bring to the boil; cover surface with a piece of baking paper, then cover tightly with foil or a lid. Make sure the quince is submerged in the liquid; you may need to place an upturned plate on top of the quince. 

4

Reduce heat to a gentle simmer; cook 3 ¼ hours or until the quince is tender and a deep-red colour. Cool quince in syrup. 

5

Strain poached quince through a fine sieve over a bowl; reserve syrup. 

6

Remove core from quince; cut each quarter in half lengthways, if you like. 

7

Place quince wedges on a plate; refrigerate until needed. Discard peelings and vanilla. 

8

Place 2 cups of the reserved syrup in a medium heavy-based saucepan over medium heat; bring to the boil. Boil for 15 minutes or until the syrup has thickened. Cool.

For the cake

9

Grease a deep 22cm bundt cake pan well. 

10

To prepare dried figs, cut off and discard the hard tops, then thinly slice figs. Combine fig and marsala in a small saucepan; bring to the boil. Cool for 15 minutes. Blend or process fig mixture until it forms a smooth paste.

11

Preheat the oven to 160°C. 

12

Beat butter and brown sugar in a small bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. 

13

Beat in eggs, one at a time. Transfer mixture to a large bowl; stir in sifted flours and bicarb, then sour cream.  

14

Stir fig paste into cake mixture. Spread batter into the pan; smooth the surface. 

15

Bake cake for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted in the centre, avoiding any cracks, comes out clean. Leave the cake in the pan for 5 minutes before turning onto a wire rack to cool. 

16

Serve cake with poached quince, drizzled with the reduced syrup.

Made this marsala & fig cake with poached quince syrup? Tag us @foodandhomesa #cookingwithFH on Instagram!

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Walnut, Orange and Cardamom Christmas Cakes

Feature image: Aremedia