Belated Christmas Cake

Christmas has come and gone like a whirlwind, and if you’re anything like me you are still dizzy from all the excitement/baking/eating/drinking! Despite all of my good intentions to have my Christmas Cake cooked, iced and ready to go before Christmas; it was not meant to be.

Every year husband and I travel to see family for Christmas, so it either includes flights or a really, really long drive. This year was no different, we were flying and the last week before Christmas was spent catching up with friends, colleagues and family, packing and baking. All stuffed into our lives before the traveling.

So the Christmas Cake did get cooked before the big day, but not iced. Which is a start really.

As a positive it has meant that I have had time, between Christmas Day and my parents arriving, to enjoy the fun of icing and relax with a beautiful piece of cake and some coffee.

christmas cake

Now I know that fruit cake is not everyone’s cup of tea. For instance my Dad isn’t a big fan of dates and I don’t love walnuts. However, I think there is a happy medium {though not in this instance}, this cake is at the richer, fruitier end of the scale, my Grandmother always made a version which wasn’t as heavy on the fruit. Personally I love the heavier fruit cake, BUT the dried fruit MUST be soaked in sherry and brandy for at least a month prior to cooking. I have seen versions which soak the fruit in orange juice, but only for a short time before baking as it doesn’t preserve like the alcohol does.

ingredients – part one

1/3 cup pitted prunes, quartered {if they are rather large prunes feel free to dice them smaller if you wish}
250 g sultanas
250 g currants
200 g dates, chopped
1/2 cup sweet sherry
1/2 cup brandy

method – part one

Combine all ingredients into a glass or ceramic dish.
Stir well. Cover with plastic wrap.
Every day give the fruit a good stir.
About once a week put an extra slosh {a technical term…approximately 1/4 cup} extra of sherry and brandy. The fruit will have absorbed the first amount and should be swollen and juicy.
Make sure the mixture doesn’t dry out…remember to keep stirring!

ingredients – part two

125 g butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1/4 cup of espresso coffee {or alternatively 1 Tbs instant coffee mixed with 1/4 cup hot water}
1/4 cup plum jam
3/4 cup self-raising flour
1 Tablespoon cocoa
1 teaspoon mixed spice
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
250 g glace cherries
1/2 cup mixed peel
1 cup walnuts {or you could use pecans}, chopped

method – part two

Preheat oven to approximately 150 degrees C. A ‘slow’ oven temperature is preferred so use your discretion depending on your particular oven.
Line a 20cm square cake tin. As this has a longer cooking time I double line the sides for a bit extra buffer against the heat.
In a small bowl combine the jam with the coffee {whilst it is still hot} this will melt the jam and help it combine more evenly in the mix.
Sift together all of the dry ingredients {spices and flour}.
In a mixer with the beater attached cream the butter and sugar together until light and combined.
Add eggs quickly on low-medium speed, making sure they are well combined after each one is added.
Quickly add the jam/coffee mix when it has cooled a bit {you don’t want scrambled eggs}, then the dry ingredients; scraping down the sides as you go.
Grab your soaked fruit and strain off all the delicious juice/sherry/brandy liquid into another bowl. Keep the strained liquid, you will need it later for basting the hot cake. {the smell is delicious…}
Transfer the cake mix into a large bowl. Most standard mixers won’t be able to handle mixing the dense fruit, so in the new bowl combine the strained fruit and the cake mix. Stirring until just combined.
Place the mix into the lined cake tin and cook for approximately 1.5 hrs. Test the cake after about 45 minutes, depending on your oven it may only need an hour.
When cooked remove from the oven and leave in its tin. Whilst still hot, baste the cake with the reserved sherry/brandy/fruit liquid using a pastry brush. To intensify the flavour, baste the cake at 10 minute intervals three times.
Once cool, turn out and decorate as desired.