Recipes

Christmas Cake

A luxurious cake with all the dried fruit and booze you would expect from a traditional recipe.

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Instructions

This luxurious cake contains all the dried fruit and booze you would expect from a traditional recipe. The rich flavours are gently warmed with a hint of nutmeg and mixed spice. You’ll need a 9cm/3 ½ in deep, 18-20cm/7-8in round cake tin, preferably loose-bottomed.

The night before you make the cake, place all the dried fruit and peel in a bowl and mix in the brandy and brandy flavouring. Cover the bowl and leave to soak in a cool place for at least 12 hours, stirring occasionally.
Preheat the oven to 140C/275F/gas mark 1. A separate oven thermometer is helpful here, especially if you are unsure of the accuracy of your oven.
Grease the tin and line the base and sides with a double thickness of greaseproof paper, allowing the paper on the sides to stand about 2cm/3/4in above the top of the tin. This gives it extra protection from the heat as it rises. It may be helpful to secure the paper around the sides with a paper clip. Remove once you have spooned in the cake batter. If you have a fan oven, which tends to heat up more than a conventional one, wrap a sheet of newspaper around the outside of the tin.
Sift the flour, salt and spices into a mixing bowl. In a separate large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together with an electric whisk until the mixture is light and fluffy. Beat the eggs and add them to the creamed mixture, 1 tbsp at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition.
Gently fold in the sieved flour and spices in two batches. Stir in the fruit and peel, the treacle and the grated rinds.
Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin and spread out evenly with the back of a spoon.
Cut out two round pieces of greaseproof paper that will fit on the top. Rub one of them with butter or oil and make a hole in the middle of both about the size of a 2 euro coin. Lay the circles on top of the cake, putting the buttered one greased-side down first. Place the tin on a baking sheet and bake on the lower shelf for 4 ½ hours. Check that the cake is cooked by inserting a skewer into the centre. It should come out clean. Leave to cool in the tin.
When the cake is cold, remove from the tin and wrap in greaseproof paper and foil. Store in an airtight container for up to 6 weeks. If you like, you can prick the top of the cake and spoon over 1 tbsp brandy every week up until the final fortnight, when you should leave it dry.

Icing the Cake

If you are using apricot jam, heat it gently in a small saucepan or microwave and sieve out the solids to make an apricot glaze. Use the apricot glaze or honey to act as a ‘glue’ to hold the almond paste in place. Take a small amount of almond paste and roll it into a long, thin sausage shape, about 1cm/½in diameter. Press this around the edge of the risen surface of the cake, using the glaze or honey to glue it in place. This helps to stabilise the cake when you ice it.
Dust a worksurface with icing sugar and roll out the almond paste in a circle just larger than the cake, about ½cm/¼in thick. Brush with the honey or glaze. Place the unrisen, bottom side of the cake on to the glazed paste and trim around the edge evenly with a knife. Turn it back over so it is paste-side up. The underside of the cake now becomes the top.
To cover the sides, roll out a long, rectangular strip of paste wide enough to cover the side height. The length should be three times the diameter of the cake. (For example, for an 18cm/7in diameter cake, make the strip 54cm/21in long.) Brush the strip with glaze or honey, lay the cake on its side at one end and roll it up in the paste, lining up the top and bottom edges. Press lightly to secure it to the cake.
Place the cake on the serving plate. Knead the icing with your hands until pliable and roll on a surface dusted with icing sugar to a circle about 35cm/14in in diameter. Brush the top of the almond paste with cooled boiled water to help the icing stick. Using the rolling pin, carefully pick up the icing and lay it over the cake. Press it gently on the top and sides. There may be folds of excess icing running down the sides. These should be trimmed and the icing pressed into place. Wet your fingers in the water to smooth over any uneven patches in the icing and trim along the bottom edge. Save any trimmings for decorating the cake.
Cut out shapes such as holly leaves and berries, or poinsettia, from the leftover icing and place them on a clean surface. Using a clean paintbrush, paint on the food colouring of your choice. Brush the undersides of the shapes with a little water and stick on to the cake.