Ocracoke Island Fig Cake With Buttermilk Glaze

Active Time:  20 min
Total Time:  1 hr 25 min
Yield:  8 to 10

FIG CAKE
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup oil
2 cups (all-purpose) flour
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda dissolved in a little hot water
1/2 cup buttermilk (see Note)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup coarsely chopped preserved figs, or fig jam
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts

BUTTERMILK GLAZE
1/2 cup buttermilk (see Note)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup ( 1/2 stick) butter
1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch or flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

To make the cake, heat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan and set aside. Beat the eggs well until light yellow and smooth. Add the sugar and oil and continue beating well to make a thick, smooth batter.
Combine the flour with the nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl, and stir with a fork to mix well. Add half the flour mixture to the egg-and-sugar mixture and stir with a wooden spoon to blend well. Add the buttermilk and mix well. Add the remaining flour along with the baking soda dissolved in water and the vanilla, and stir to mix everything into a fairly smooth batter. Gently stir in the figs and the nuts, mixing just until they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
Quickly scrape the batter into the prepared pan, and bake at 350°F for 40 to 50 minutes until the cake is handsomely brown and firm on top, and until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. While the cake bakes, prepare the buttermilk glaze and set aside until the cake is done.
Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack or folded kitchen towel for about 15 minutes. Loosen the cake from the pan gently, running a table knife around the sides of the pan, and then gently turn it out onto the wire rack. Turn the cake top side up, and carefully place it on a serving plate or cake stand.
While the cake is baking, make the glaze in a medium saucepan, combining the buttermilk, sugar, butter, cornstarch, and baking soda, and bringing to a gentle boil. Remove at once, stir well, and cool to room temperature. Add the vanilla, and set aside until the cake is done. Spoon the buttermilk glaze over the warm cake, and cool completely.

Notes: If you don’t have buttermilk, stir 1 tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice into 1 cup of milk, and let stand for 10 minutes.
This cake is also popular as a layer cake, filled and topped with Cream Cheese Frosting.
For the figs, the best choice is whole preserved ones, which you drain, stem, and chop into small but significant chunks.
Another option is dried figs, which you can stem, halve lengthwise, and simmer for 30 minutes in 1 cup of water mixed with 1 cup of sugar, and then cool and chop.