This is a recipe from way back in 2004 from my friend Alice. It was wonderful – so this is what I wrote back then. Yes it’s in cups.

[time goes backwards]

I have been waiting all week to make this and finally found the time this morning at 6.30.

1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon of ground ginger
1 teaspoons of ground cloves (I hate cloves so used mixed spice)
3 teaspoons of cinnamon
1.5 teaspoons of baking powder.
12 red plums, destoned and chopped. (one of my tweaks)

1/2 cup of fruit jam (I used plum)
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup of melted butter.

Brown sugar for sprinkling

Put the plums into an ovenproof dish and sprinkle well with at least 4 tbs brown sugar and 2 tsp cinnamon. Mix well and bake at Gas 4 until softened. Drain the juice off.

Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl together.

Then combine the fruit jam, whole milk and the melted butter.

Stir this into the dry ingredients, and beat swiftly into a smooth batter.

Spread the drained fruit all over the base of the well greased and lined tin.

Pour in the batter – it raises about 1/3 or ½ in volume by the way – and bake for 45 mins to an hour at 175C. (Just under 170C for fan ovens)

Let it cool in the tin – the top does drop in on itself so don’t panic.

I can smell it. It’s wonderful!