Agave Cake with Rhubarb

Serves: 8

Preparation: 1 hr 10 mins

Ingredients

For the Cake

  • 170g The Groovy Food Company Agave Light and Mild
  • 140g salted butter
  • 85g light muscovado sugar
  • 2 free-range eggs, beaten
  • 200g self-raising flour, sieved

For the Icing

  • 55g icing sugar
  • 1 tbsp agave nectar
  • zest of 1 lemon

For the Rhubarb Compote

  • 1kg rhubarb, cut into 4-5cm lengths
  • juice of 1 large orange
  • 125ml agave nectar

Agave is available in all major supermarkets in the sugar and sweetener aisle

Method

Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4 and line the bottom of an 18cm cake tin.

Pop the agave nectar (for the cake), butter and sugar into a pan. Add 1 tbsp water and heat.

Remove from the heat and mix in the eggs and flour. Spoon into the tin and bake for 40-45 minutes until the cake is springy to the touch and shrinking slightly from the sides of the tin.

Cool slightly in the tin before turning out onto a wire rack.

While the cake is still warm, make the icing by mixing the sugar, agave nectar (for the icing) and lemon zest together with 2-3 tbsp hot water. Glaze the cake with the icing and allow to cool completely before serving.

To make the compote, put the rhubarb, orange juice and the agave nectar (for the compote) in a saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer, stirring occasionally. Cook for about five minutes, until the rhubarb breaks down into a purée.

Stop cooking when some of the rhubarb is still just holding its shape, but make sure it's quite tender and not at all crunchy. Use a sieve to strain off a little of the syrupy juice, so you get a slightly denser rhubarb mixture and some good, tart rhubarb syrup. Serve warm or cold alongside the cake.