Tomato Soup Cake

'Flour, sugar, eggs, tomato soup...' A tin of tomato soup probably isn't the first thing you are ever going to put on your shopping list when writing down cake ingredients. I first came across a tomato soup cake at a Clandestine Cake Club meeting where the theme was 'Midsummer Madness'. Since this month's Love Cake theme is It's a mystery I thought I would recreate it for us all to try.

The redness of the soup certainly does come out in the colour of the cake. As for the taste I think with the combination of the spices and the cream cheese filling and topping it tastes like carrot cake. I love carrot cake but I don't make it very often because it is such a hassle to grate all the carrots. This cake is much simpler with everything being added in and whisked together. I use condensed cream of tomato soup as it's something I have used in various recipes for years now and I prefer the thicker texture of this soup. The rest of the soup I used in a savoury meal consisting of the leftover pork from the Sunday roast and the rest of the boulangère potatoes from that meal – nothing goes to waste here.

If you're still not convinced about this recipe keep it for occasions when you need a novelty cake or something that can act as a talking point. I'm sure you won't be disappointed when you try it.

Equipment: 8in (20cm) round tin lined, large bowl, electric whisk/beaters.

Ingredients

6oz (170g) Plain flour

4oz (115g) Caster sugar

2 tsp (10ml) Baking powder

½ tsp (2.5ml) Bicarbonate of soda

1tsp (5ml) Mixed spice

½ tsp (2.5ml) Cinnamon

Half a 295g tin of Condensed Cream of Tomato soup

4tbsp (60ml) Sunflower oil

1 Egg

2tbsp (30ml) Water

Filling and topping

3oz (85g) Cream cheese

8oz (225g) Icing sugar

½ tsp (2.5ml) Vanilla extract

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180°C/Gas mark 4.

2. In a large bowl add the flour, sugar, baking powder, bicarb, mixed spice, cinnamon, tomato soup and oil and beat together well.

3. Add the egg and water and beat again.

4. Pour into the prepared tin

5. Bake for around 35 minutes until well risen and a skewer comes out clean.

6. Cool for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

7. Once cool cut the cake in two.

8. Make up the filling and topping by beating together the cream cheese and icing sugar. Add the vanilla extract and beat again.

9. Spread half the mixture on the bottom layer, replace the top and then spread the remaining mixture on top.