Cornish saffron cake, or making cakes rise with yeast

Having had such a run of good recipes thanks to my dalliance with The Vegan Boulangerie, this week I've been carrying on on my baking tip. 

My most recent foray into pastures new and floury was this attempt at Cornish saffron cake.  

My knowledge of Cornish food before this cake experiment was rather limited to new-tax-raiser and political-storm-generator, the pasty. Turns out the Cornish like their saffrony goodies as well as their stuff in pastry - the internet informs me that they also have a history of saffron buns, pleasingly referred to as "tea treat buns". How could you not love anything with such a sweet name?

And learning I am - thanks to this recipe, I've now made a cake that rises with yeast, rather than with egg substitute. The texture doesn't seem to be affected noticeably, although the rise I hoped to get from the cake based on my recent bread experiences didn't occur - rather than blossoming to double its size, the mixture maybe grew by a quarter. 

The downside of using yeast is that it means you have to wait an extra long time for your cake to come out of the oven. Patience may be a virtue, but anything that stands between me and a slice of cake has got to have a damn good reason.

So, ladies and gentlemen, I present to you my attempt at a vegan Cornish saffron cake - proof that the best (or at least the tastiest) come to those who wait.