Why Has My Sticky Gingerbread Cake Not Risen?

Our answer

Nigella's Sticky Gingerbread [from NIGELLA CHRISTMAS is made with a combination of fresh and ground ginger for fiery flavour and a combination of golden syrup and treacle (or molasses) stops it from being overly sweet. The raising agent in the recipe is bicarbonate of soda, which in the US is called baking soda. This is very different though to baking powder.

If the gingerbread is very dense or heavy then it will most likely be a problem with the raising agent. First it is worth mentioning that bicarbonate of soda acts very quickly and as soon as it comes into contact with liquid, so you need to put the cake batter in the oven as soon as it is mixed. If the batter stands around for a long time then the bicarbonate of soda will have activated and expired and the gingerbread won't rise. So make sure that you heat the oven before you start to make the batter. Also, if the bicarbonate of soda is stored in a damp place it can expire before the use by date and will not be as active, so check the use by date on the packaging to make sure that it has not expired. Finally, if the surface of the cake has a very wrinkled surface then it is an indication that too much bicarbonate of soda has been used and the cake has risen a lot in the oven but then sunk back a lot. The gingerbread could also have a slightly bitter taste. Make sure that you only use one teaspoon (5mls) and this should be a level measure and not heaped.