Christmas cake

Dessert · British classic.

Ingredients

• 200g Butter
• 200g Muscovado Sugar
• 200g Plain Flour
• 4 Beaten Eggs
• 50g Ground Almonds
• 100ml Sherry
• 85g Candied Peel
• 85g Glace Cherry
• 250g Raisins
• 250g Currants
• 100g Pecan Nuts
• Grated zest of 1 Lemon
• 1 ½ tbsp Mixed Spice
• 1 ½ tbsp Rose water
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/2 tsp Baking Powder

Method

1. Heat the pan — Heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. Line the base and sides of a 20 cm round, 7.5 cm deep cake tin.
2. Mix together — Beat the butter and sugar with an electric hand mixer for 1-2 mins until very creamy and pale in colour, scraping down the sides of the bowl half way through.
3. Stir — Stir in a spoonful of the flour, then stir in the beaten egg and the rest of the flour alternately, a quarter at a time, beating well each time with a wooden spoon.
4. Mix together — Stir in the almonds. Mix in the sherry (the mix will look curdled), then add the peel, cherries, raisins, cherries, nuts, lemon zest, spice, rosewater and vanilla.
5. Mix together — Beat together to mix, then stir in the baking powder.
6. Mix together — Spoon mixture into the tin and smooth the top, making a slight dip in the centre.
7. Bake — Bake for 30 mins, then lower temperature to 150C/fan 130C/gas 2 and bake a further 2-2¼ hrs, until a skewer insterted in the middle comes out clean.
8. Continue cooking — Leave to cool in the tin, then take out of the tin and peel off the lining paper.
9. Continue cooking — When completely cold, wrap well in cling film and foil to store until ready to decorate.
10. Continue cooking — The cake will keep for several months.

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