Yield: 12 servings
| Measure | Ingredient |
|---|---|
| 1½ cup | Self-rising flour |
| 1½ teaspoon | Baking powder |
| 1 teaspoon | Mixed Spice |
| ¾ cup | Margarine, softened |
| ¾ cup | Superfine sugar |
| 3 \N | Eggs |
| 2 tablespoons | Unsweetened cocoa powder |
| 2 tablespoons | Hot water |
| ½ cup | Granulated sugar |
| ⅔ cup | Water |
| 2 \N | Cinnamon sticks (2\") |
| ¼ cup | Dark rum |
| 2 tablespoons | Slivered almonds |
| 6 ounces | Semisweet chocolate, broken in pieces |
| \N \N | Whipped cream |
Preheat oven to 325'F. (165'C.). Generously grease a 5-cup fluted or plain tube pan and dust lightly with flour. Sift flour, baking powder and Mixed Spice into a bowl. Add margarine, superfine sugar and eggs.
Blend cocoa powder with hot water and add to flour mixture. Beat well with a wooden spoon 2 minutes or 1 minute if using an electric mixer.
Turn mixture into prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven 1-¼ hours or until well risen and cake begins to shrink from edges of pan.
Carefully turn out cake onto a wire rack and cool.
Combine granulated sugar and ⅔ cup water in a saucepan. Add cinnamon and heat gently, stirring to dissolve sugar. Boil 5 minutes.
Remove from heat, add rum and discard cinnamon. Place cake on a plate. Spoon syrup over cake and let stand 2 hours. Stud top of cake with almonds. Melt chocolate; carefully spooon over cake, spreading to give a smooth even coating. Let stand several hours. Pipe (with a pastry bag) whipped cream around bottom of cake.