Very Berry Christmas Cake
Gorgeous Christmas cake. Make at least one month in advance. The soaking part isn't in the original recipe but my family have always soaked their fruit before putting it into the cake as it stops the fruit going really hard during baking.
Ingredients of Very Berry Christmas Cake
225 grams Plain Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Ground Mixed Spice
175 grams Butter
175 grams Soft Brown Sugar
4 large Eggs
1 Orange zested
150 grams Ground Almonds
1 kilogram Asda Berry Dried Fruit Mix or equivilent in sultanas, raisin, cherries, cranberries
1 bottle Sherry 3/4 of bottle for soaking
Caster Sugar for rolling out
500 grams Marzipan
75 grams Apricot Jam
500 grams Icing ready rolled
Preparation of Very Berry Christmas Cake
Two weeks prior to baking, place all the fruit in a large bowl and cover with sherry. Leave for two weeks covered, and mix once a day.
Preheat the oven to 150c/Gas 2, line a 20cm deep square cake tin with three layers of baker paper. Sift the flour and spice together. In a seperate bowl, cream together the butter and sugar, then beat in the eggs one by one, adding a tablespoon of the flour mixture with the last two. Stir in remaining flour with the orange zest and almonds, and the fruit which you have soaked in the sherry.
You can also use orange juice, however just add 3tbsp of this to the mixture rather than soaking the fruit.
Put in the tin and make a shallow depression in the centre. Bake for 1 hour, then reduce to 140c/gas 1 and continue for another 2 to 3 hours, covering with foil 2 hours into baking. THe cake is cooked when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Remove the tin and cool on a rack - DO NOT PEEL OFF THE BAKING PAPER JUST YET!
When cold, store in an airtight container for up to one month. You can during this time, feed the cake more sherry. A large spoonful a day is fine.
When ready to ice, remove the baking paper and, on a surface sprinkled with caster sugar, roll out marzipan. Put the cake on top and cut round it. Set the marzipan aside then gently heat the apricot jam and brush it over the top of the cake.
Top with marzipan, then roll out the icing to fit and put on top. Decorate as desired.
Very Berry Christmas Cake
Cuisine: British Main Ingredient: Fruit
Very Berry Christmas Cake
Servings: 30 Servings
Category: Christmas Recipes
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