Butternut squash and cranberry cake

Ingredients

300g self-raising flour

300g light muscovado sugar

3 tsp mixed spice

2 tsp bicarbonate of soda

250g dried cranberries

½ tsp salt

4 eggs , beaten

200g butter , melted

Zest 1 orange

1 tbsp orange juice

500g (peeled weight) butternut squash, grated

For the icing:

300g cream cheese

85g butter, softened

150g icing sugar, sifted

1 – 2 tbsp orange juice

50g dried cranberries, chopped

Method

Grease and line a 30 x 20cm baking tin with baking parchment. Put the flour, sugar, spice, bicarbonate of soda, cranberries and salt into a large bowl and stir to combine.

Beat the eggs into the melted butter, stir in the orange zest and juice, then mix with the dry ingredients till combined. Stir in the butternut squash. Pour the batter into the tin and bake for 35 minutes, or until golden and springy to the touch and when a skewer is inserted, it comes out clean.

To make the icing, beat together the cheese, butter, icing sugar, and 1 tbsp orange juice till smooth and creamy, then set aside in the fridge. Leave the cake to cool in the tin for 5 minutes and then remove from the tin.

Give the cream cheese icing a quick beat to loosen and add more orange juice if needed. Spread the icing over the cake and swirl into a pattern. Sprinkle over the chopped cranberries.

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