News

The Best Rum Cake in the Bahamas

By: Caribbean Journal Staff - February 21, 2013 - 9:04 am

By Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon

I THOUGHT THE SWIMMING PIGS would be the highlight of the day. Boy, was I wrong.

I was on a day trip in the Exumas, the 365-island Bahamas archipelago famous for crystal clear waters, talcum sand and some of the world’s best fishing. Our captain Ray Lightbourne and his son Justin had whisked us in their speedboat from the dock on Great Exuma across flat sapphire seas to a profusion of tiny cays, some mere scrubby spits of sand, others with flourishing stands of coconut palms and sea grapes.

I’d held a starfish bigger than my head in my hand, and savored fresh-cut pineapple spears on a postcard-perfect middle-of-nowhere sandbar.

In the afternoon we fed nurse sharks at Compass Cay, and snorkeled the depths of Thunderball Cave (yep, the one in the classic James Bond film).

But I was sure that frolicking with and feeding the famous colony of paddling pigs at Big Major Cay marked the day’s crescendo.

However, that was yet to come.

Before we headed back to Barraterre, Ray told us, we’d be making one final stop. And minutes later he dropped anchor in the shimmering shallows, dived off the side of the boat, and plunged a multicolor beach umbrella into the sand. Justin cracked open bottles of Kalik, and before you know it we were all in the water, basking in the welcome shade cast by the beach umbrella, and toasting our good fortune to be here.

And that’s when Ray made the big reveal, handing us plates heavy with generous slices of the most delicious rum cake I’ve ever had the pleasure to taste. “It’s my wife’s secret recipe,” he crowed, as we tucked into the glistening golden slabs, moist with butter and liberally laced with Bahamian rum. To compare it to a mass-produced rum cake would be like comparing the finest aged cheddar to Cheez Whiz. Each flavourful bite seemed to encapsulate the magic of the day, sunshine, sandbars, swimming pigs and all. Ray’s wife will probably never share her recipe with me. But that’s OK. No cake I could make would ever taste as sweet as hers did on that beautiful Bahamian day.

Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon is a Caribbean travel expert, award-winning travel journalist, and TV personality. Former executive editor at Caribbean Travel + Life magazine, she is also jetsetter-in-chief at JetSetSarah.com, where travel and shopping meet. This story was originally published on JetSetSarah.

Popular Posts antigua long bay

25 Perfect Caribbean Beaches to Add to Your Summer Bucket List

There’s nothing like a Caribbean beach in summer. The crowds thin out, the winds relax, and the islands start breathing in a different way. The beaches you thought you knew feel new again— stretches of sand once packed with winter […]


The 15 Best Hotels in Trinidad and Tobago, From Hidden Eco-Retreats to Luxury Towers

trinidad and tobago hotels where to stay

From Port of Spain to Tobago’s quiet coasts, these are the places to check in now No two Caribbean islands are quite like Trinidad and Tobago—and no two hotels here feel the same. This is a destination of contrast: Carnival […]


This Marriott All-Inclusive Resort Is Coming to Barbados —  And You Can Book It With Points

new brand for the caribbean

Barbados has long been a haven for adults in search of refinement — the kind of place where luxury and culture blend in quiet, confident harmony. Now, that ethos is becoming the foundation of a new resort concept that aims […]


Related Posts

Forget the Crowds: 5 Tiny Caribbean Islands to Escape to Now

There’s a certain moment in Caribbean travel. When the big islands start to feel crowded. When the bustling beaches feel like airports. When the escape needs an escape. That’s when you go smaller. Not just small — tiny. Because tucked […]


Bahamas Cruise Passenger Arrivals Keep Climbing 

bahamas cruise arrivals

Cruise arrivals to The Bahamas continue to surge, with the region’s most popular cruise destination showing no signs of slowing down.  The Bahamas reported 2.759 million cruise passenger arrivals in the first quarter of 2025, according to data from the […]


25 Perfect Caribbean Beaches to Add to Your Summer Bucket List

antigua long bay

There’s nothing like a Caribbean beach in summer. The crowds thin out, the winds relax, and the islands start breathing in a different way. The beaches you thought you knew feel new again— stretches of sand once packed with winter […]