Why Is My Vegan Gingerbread So Gooey?

Our answer

Nigella's Luscious Vegan Gingerbread (from COOK, EAT, REPEAT) is a moist, slightly dense and sticky ginger cake, rather than being too dry and bready. It has quite a liquid batter but nonetheless the cake should bake in around 50-55 minutes and not be liquid in the centre. However, all ovens vary so you may need a few minutes more or less.

The cake is baked in a 22cm (9-inch) square cake pan. If the cake pan is smaller then the cooking time will be longer as the cake is deeper and it takes longer for the heat to penetrate to the centre. Also a 23cm (9-inch) round cake pan can take longer as round pans have less capacity that square pans. So it may be worth checking the dimensions of the pan. If you have a regular (ie not a fan or convection) oven then the cake should be baked on the centre shelf and it may be worth checking if the oven is running slightly cool, as this can be more noticeable with liquid cake batters. If the cake needs slightly longer in the oven, then you can cover the top of the cake pan with a sheet of foil after 50 minutes, to prevent the top from becoming too dark.