Gingerbread Cake With Candied Kumquats

I have been buying kumquats regularly and eating them like candies, but have not tried making them into marmalade. I was looking for recipes that have candied kumquat and found this gingerbread cake. The cake is so moist and not overly sweet, it tastes so Christmassy and I will definitely make this again next Christmas. For the candied kumquats I used ¼ C of white sugar, 2 T water and 1 pound of thick sliced kumquats, a dash of ground cinnamon and a piece of clove is optional. Cook for 5 minutes until thick. I left the cooked fruits in syrup and the orange color deepened overnight.

Gingerbread Cake with Candied Kumquats
cake
1 cup unsulfured light molasses
¾ cup hot water
½ cup grapeseed oil
1 egg
2 1/3 cups flour
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinammon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cloves

caramel cream cheese frosting
¾ cup dark brown sugar
½ cup heavy whipping cream
2 8-oz bricks cream cheese, at room temperature
¼ cup butter, softened

• Cake: Line three 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 325°F. In a large bowl mix water and molasses, mix the rest of the ingredients and beat for 3 minutes. Divide batter equally and pour into the pans and bake for 25 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean. Remove from pans and let cool on a wire rack.
• Frosting: In a small saucepan combine brown sugar and whipping cream, let boil once stirring constantly. Let cool. In a medium bowl, beat butter and cream cheese until fluffy, beat in cooled caramel, continue beating for 3 minutes.
• Assemble the cake: Reserve a plateful of candied kumquats to decorate the top of cake. Chop the rest and divide into 2 portions, set aside. Set one cake layer on a flat plate or cake board, spread half of the chopped kumquats, then frost. Repeat with the second cake layer. Frost the sides and the top layer. Arrange the sliced candied kumquats on top. Optional: decorate lower half of cake with chopped candied ginger. Refrigerate for 6 hours or overnight before slicing. Enjoy this super moist, spicy, rich cake enhanced with the sweetness and tang of kumquats with a cup of steaming hot unsweetened jasmine tea, sooo good.