Christmas Cake Recipe

This christmas cake recipe matures if kept so I make mine three to four weeks before Christmas. I always make some of these with my children  and give them as presents to their teachers. You can place the finished cake on a round cake board and either place in a fancy round tin or wrap in clear film and tie with a large bow.

Christmas Cake

Christmas Cake Recipe Ingredients 350g raisins 275f sultanas 275g currants 4 tbsp each brandy or port 250g butter, softened 250g dark muscovado sugar 350g plain flour 1 tsp baking powder Pinch of salt 6 eggs 50g ground almonds 1 tsp mixed spice 1 tsp cinnamon 1 tsp grated lemon rind 50g mixed peel 100g glace cherries, halved 100g pecans, chopped 125g apricot jam 2 to 3 tbsp water Extra glace fruits and pecans for decoration   Method Put the raisins, sultanas and currants in a large bowl and pour in the brandy and port. Leave to soak overnight. Next day, line and grease a 23cm (9 in) diameter cake tin. Tie a double thickness of brown paper around the outside to come about 4 cm (1 ½ in) higher than the cake. Pre-heat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas 2.

Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt. Beat in the eggs one at a time, adding some of the flour mixture with each egg. Beat in the remaining flour and almonds. Add mixed spice, cinnamon and lemon rind. Finally mix in dried fruit and nuts. Spoon into the tin and level. Bake in the centre of the oven for about 2 and a half hours  (after 1 hour, cover the cake with greaseproof paper), or until the cake is firm to the touch and a skewer in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin for about 30 minutes. Turn out on to a wire rack and cool and then wrap in aluminium foil and store. 

To decorate, warm the jam and water in a saucepan, sieve and brush some over the cake. Alternatively simply warm the apricot glaze and use that instead.  Arrange the glace fruits and nuts and brush on more of the glaze. Finally tie a wide ribbon around the cake.

Iced fruit Christmas Cake Recipe

You can either cover the Fruit Cake with glace fruits and nuts or you can ice the cake with white icing and Cape Gooseberries or a decoration of your choice.. This is what you will need to ice the cake.

3 tbsp apricot glaze
Icing sugar for dusting
750g natural colour marzipan
750g white ready to roll icing

Dust the work surface with icing sugar, then roll out the marzipan evenly until you have a 5 mm thick round about 40 cm across.

Brush the cake with warmed apricot glaze.

Lift the marzipan over the cake using a rolling pin, then smooth with your hands and trim off the excess. Leave to dry for a few hours. 

Lightly brush the marzipan all over with the cooled boiled water. Roll the icing out in the same way as you rolled out the marzipan, then smooth with your hands , trim off the excess and leave to dry.

Decorate with Chinese Gooseberries or whatever decorations you wish.

It's fine to ice the cake about a week ahead. You can decorate the casket with icing and leaves moulded  from icing and dusted with golden sprinkles Finally decorate with cape Gooseberries and whipped cream.