Downton Abbey's Caraway Seed Cake

All you Downton Abbey fans out there...you're in for a real treat. If you've been following the affairs of the aristocratic Crawley family and their host of domestic servants on the hugely popular TV series or the movie, set between 1912-1926, you will be thrilled to know that The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook is out! 

Yes! Downton Abbey inspired food!

It features over 100 recipes that showcase the cookery and customs of the Crawley household from elegant menu items for upstairs dinner parties to the more simple, yet equally sumptous meals for the downstairs staff. Drawn from recipe books published between 1875 and 1930, it highlights some of the best of Edwardian food of the time.

I couldn't wait to try out some of these recipes. And the very first one that I made was a Downton Abbey cake recipe for Caraway Seed Cake, following the recipe straight out of The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook.

Caraway seed cake made from the recipe from The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook

This simple afternoon tea cake is something filling and satisfying that I imagine Mrs. Patmore would probably have on the ready in the Servants' Hall for tea or supper, that could be enjoyed along with a cup of strong tea.

So, please take a piece of my Downton Caraway Seed cake and let me tell you a little more about all that this wonderful cookbook has to offer. And I promise to share the Caraway Seed Cake recipe with you at the end of this post.

 

The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook

If you watch Downton Abbey, you would know that whether upstairs (where the rich and beautiful hang) or downstairs (when the servants reside) in the spectacular Highclere Castle, many a sweet...or spicy event has unfolded around the dinner table. Not to mention at afternoon tea, garden parties, picnics, shoots, race meets, cricket matches and village fetes.

 

Downton Abbey filmed in Hampshire's Highclere Castle.

The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook has grouped recipes by each of these occasions and locations, including Breakfast (Hello Kedgeree and English Muffins), Upstairs Dinners (très chic Poached Gammon and Veal Chops Perigourdine), Downstairs Dinners (all time favourites like Toad in the Hole, Spotted Dick, Cauliflower Cheese and Steamed Treacle Pudding), Afternoon Tea (Dundee Cake, Victoria Sandwich) and for Supper and Tea (Seed Cake and Digestive Biscuits)... and that's just a teeny weeny sampling of all the mouth-watering, eye-catching, page-turning delicacies offered on every page of this Cookbook.

  Stunning photos of Rose Aldridge and the beautiful Charlotte Russe dessert grace the pages of The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook

Author and food historian, Annie Gray provides a rich and fascinating background of the dishes and a glimpse of what life was like around 1912-1926 in the formal dining room of the Earl of Grantham, as well as in the smoky kitchen, servants' halls, the still room and the kitchen gardens on the Yorkshire country estate of Downton Abbey.

Photos of Mrs. Patmore in the kitchen feature alongside delicious desserts in The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook by Annie Gray.

 

I cannot imagine the research that went into producing a cookbook like this. It's way more than just a cookbook. With lavish illustrations, sumptuous settings, fascinating stories, quotes from the characters and descriptions of the scenes and settings from the TV series sets, it's definitely coffee table material.

Take a look inside this Cookbook if you don't believe me.
This is a perfect gift for Downton Abbey fans, available in both Kindle and Hardcover versions. Or for something a little extra special, consider The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook Gift Set which comes with a book and apron.

Caraway Seed Cake from The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook

Downton Abbey's Caraway Seed Cake

Many recipes use a simple pound cake recipe and add caraways seeds to it. But, be warned that this is not one of them.

The Downton Abbey Caraway Seed Cake recipe bakes a dense, filling cake, with a slightly biscuity top that softens if the cake is kept covered. The texture of this caraway seed cake is not light, moist or airy; words that you might associate with traditional 'cakes.' It's more like a 'bread', rather than a 'cake.'

This is because the recipe uses a lot of flour (450g);  more than double the quantity of flour in weight to butter (170g) or sugar (170g). So, naturally, the cake is dense and filling. But satisfying, fragrant and uniquely lovely in every way.  

If you want to try a different kind of 'cake', that's not too sweet and borders on a softish bread-like biscuit, then this recipe is for you. If not, you have been pre-warned. If you bake this cake and don't like the texture, then you only have yourself to blame. 

Note: It's best to weigh the flour rather than relying on cup measures for this recipe. Excess flour will make the cake dry and crumbly.

Slice this simple cake into diamond pieces.

 

Caraway Seed Rusks

I loved the flavor and texture of this caraway seed cake and I think it would be great to turn them into rusks.

To make Caraway Seed Rusks, follow this same recipe. (recipe below).

• Bake the cake, cut it into pieces and then spread them out on a parchment lined baking tray. 
• Then bake the pieces a second time in a 200°F oven for 6 hours. Caraway seed rusks are ready!
  

What is the Indian Name for Caraway Seeds?

The Indian name for caraway seeds is shahi jeera.

The use of caraway seeds or shahi jeera is quite popular in Indian cooking. Mostly to flavor rice, pulaos, biryanis and vegetable dishes but sometimes cakes, bread and buns too. 

And yes, we do make caraway seed cake in India; a recipe definitely brought over by the British and a remnant of colonial times.

How to Make Downton's Caraway Seed Cake

In a nutshell, here's how to make this cake with are the process steps  and pictures. The recipe follows directly below.

1. Cream Butter
   
2. Add Brown Sugar
3. Add Flour
   
4. Add Milk
   
5. Add Caraway Seeds
6. Add Beaten Eggs
7. Bake

1. Cream Butter

Cream butter

 

2. Add Brown Sugar

Cream brown sugar with butter

3. Add Flour

Note: The mixture will look quite dry and crumbly, resembling coarse breadcrumbs.

Mix in flour. Mixture should resemble breadcrumbs.

 

4. Add Milk

Add the milk and beat to form a smooth batter. The batter will appear quite doughy at this point).

Add milk

 

 

5. Add Caraway Seeds

Add caraway seeds

 

6. Add Beaten Eggs

Add beaten eggs

 7. Bake

Pour batter into lined cake tin and bake

 

English Caraway Seed Cake Recipe from The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook

Ingredients:

☐ 170g butter at room temperature (approx. 3/4 cup)

☐ 170g brown sugar (approx. 3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon)

☐ 450g all purpose flour (approx. 3 1/2 cups flour, spooned and leveled)

☐ 1 teaspoon baking powder

☐ 1/2 teaspoon mixed spices (ground nutmeg, cinnamon, clove and allspice)

☐ 300 ml. whole milk at room temperature ( 1 1/4 cup)

☐ 2 tablespoons caraway seeds

☐ 2 eggs

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1: Prep

• Line, grease and dust an 8 inch square baking pan. Dust lightly with flour and tap out excess flour.
• Sift flour and baking powder together and set aside.
• In a small bowl, beat eggs until frothy and set aside.
  
• Pre-heat oven to 325° F.

Step 2: Make batter

• In a large bowl, add butter and beat until the butter is pale and creamy.
• Add the brown sugar and spices. Beat well.
• Add the sifted flour mixture, a little at a time, beating well between additions. The mixture will look quite dry and crumbly, resembling coarse breadcrumbs.
• Add the milk and beat to form a smooth batter. The batter will appear quite doughy at this point.
• Add the caraway seeds and beat until everything is thoroughly mixed.
• Slowly add the beaten eggs, beating well. Continue to beat the batter for a few more minutes until the batter is smooth and creamy.

 

Step 3: Bake

• Pour the batter into the baking tin.
• Place on the center rack, in the center of the pre-heated 325°F oven.
  
• Bake for about 1 hour until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

 

Want More?

If you'd like to here interesting titbits from food historian and the author of The Official Downton Abbey Cookbook, Annie Gray, join Chef Nini and Annie Gray as they bake Teatime Scones together in the Downton Kitchen.

 

And if you've got the time, pour yourself a glass of wine and enjoy Happy Hour with Annie Gray as she takes you into the world of Downton Abbey, onto the kitchen set and into early 20th century dining.

 

Additional Reading: Introducing the Official Downton Abbey Cookbook by ckbk.

 

Related Recipes: 

Try my other famous cookbook inspired recipes:

• Dishoom Cookbook: Memsahib's Mess- My Expertise

 

And some of my favourite cake recipes:

• Strawberry Victoria Jam Sandwich Cake- Fit For a Queen
  
• Apricot and Almond Cake (Aprikosenkuchen)- And Fruit and Nut Lived Happily Ever After
  
• Cardamom Pear Cake