Black Cake

This iconic Jamaican and Trinidadian dessert is a holiday staple that requires precision, patience, and practice. A dense, boozy, pitch-dark cake, it’s made by fermenting raisins, dried plums, dried cherries, and prunes in a combination of rum and fruit-based brandy or, at times, Manischewitz, which is a popular substitute. This recipe comes from Islas contributor Brigid Washington, who continues to prepare the cakes in the manner similar to three matriarchs before h