British · Dessert
Christmas cake
A rich British fruitcake packed with dried fruits, nuts, and warming spices, soaked with sherry for extra flavor. This traditional Christmas centerpiece improves with age and can be stored for months, making it the perfect make-ahead holiday dessert.
The Method
Instructions
First things first, go ahead and preheat your oven to 160C (that's 140C if you're using a fan oven, or gas mark 3 if you're on gas). While the oven is warming up, take a 20 cm round cake tin that's about 7.5 cm deep and line both the base and the sides with baking parchment. This will help your Christmas cake come out cleanly without sticking to the tin.
Now, grab your electric hand mixer and a large mixing bowl. Pop in the butter and muscovado sugar, then beat them together for a good 1 to 2 minutes until the mixture becomes wonderfully creamy and pale in color. Don't forget to stop halfway through and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula or spoon so everything mixes evenly.
Next, sprinkle in a spoonful of your plain flour and give it a gentle stir just to start incorporating it. Then, you're going to add the beaten eggs and the rest of the flour little by little. Do this alternately in quarters , so a bit of egg, then some flour, then egg again, and so on. Use a wooden spoon for this, and make sure to beat well after each addition . This helps everything come together smoothly and prevents the eggs from curdling.
Once the flour and eggs are fully mixed in, stir in the ground almonds. This will add a lovely nutty texture to your cake.
Here comes the fun part , pour in the sherry. Don't worry if the mixture looks a little curdled or separated at this point; that's totally normal and nothing to stress about. Next, toss in all your fruity and flavor packed ingredients: the candied peel, glace cherries, raisins, pecan nuts, along with the fresh lemon zest, mixed spice, a splash of rose water, and a bit of vanilla extract. Give everything a good stir or a gentle beat so all these delicious bits are evenly distributed.
To help your cake rise nicely, fold in the baking powder at the end with a gentle hand.
Carefully spoon the thick batter into your lined cake tin. Use the back of a spoon or an offset spatula to smooth the surface, and don't forget to make a slight dip in the center. This little indentation helps the cake bake evenly and prevents it from doming too much as it cooks.
Pop your cake into the oven and bake at 160C for 30 minutes . Once the initial half hour is done, gently lower the temperature to 150C (or 130C fan, gas mark 2) and continue baking for another 2 to 2 and a quarter hours. You want to bake it slowly and gently so it cooks through without drying out.
To check if it's ready, insert a skewer or thin knife into the center of the cake , it should come out clean or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. When it's done, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely in the tin. Once cooled, carefully peel off the parchment lining and then wrap the cake snugly in cling film and foil.
Your Christmas cake will keep beautifully for several months if stored properly, developing even richer flavors over time. This makes it perfect to prepare well in advance and decorate when the festive season arrives. Patience really pays off with this cake , the longer it sits, the more delicious it becomes! Enjoy every step of making this classic British treat.
Now, grab your electric hand mixer and a large mixing bowl. Pop in the butter and muscovado sugar, then beat them together for a good 1 to 2 minutes until the mixture becomes wonderfully creamy and pale in color. Don't forget to stop halfway through and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula or spoon so everything mixes evenly.
Next, sprinkle in a spoonful of your plain flour and give it a gentle stir just to start incorporating it. Then, you're going to add the beaten eggs and the rest of the flour little by little. Do this alternately in quarters , so a bit of egg, then some flour, then egg again, and so on. Use a wooden spoon for this, and make sure to beat well after each addition . This helps everything come together smoothly and prevents the eggs from curdling.
Once the flour and eggs are fully mixed in, stir in the ground almonds. This will add a lovely nutty texture to your cake.
Here comes the fun part , pour in the sherry. Don't worry if the mixture looks a little curdled or separated at this point; that's totally normal and nothing to stress about. Next, toss in all your fruity and flavor packed ingredients: the candied peel, glace cherries, raisins, pecan nuts, along with the fresh lemon zest, mixed spice, a splash of rose water, and a bit of vanilla extract. Give everything a good stir or a gentle beat so all these delicious bits are evenly distributed.
To help your cake rise nicely, fold in the baking powder at the end with a gentle hand.
Carefully spoon the thick batter into your lined cake tin. Use the back of a spoon or an offset spatula to smooth the surface, and don't forget to make a slight dip in the center. This little indentation helps the cake bake evenly and prevents it from doming too much as it cooks.
Pop your cake into the oven and bake at 160C for 30 minutes . Once the initial half hour is done, gently lower the temperature to 150C (or 130C fan, gas mark 2) and continue baking for another 2 to 2 and a quarter hours. You want to bake it slowly and gently so it cooks through without drying out.
To check if it's ready, insert a skewer or thin knife into the center of the cake , it should come out clean or with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. When it's done, take it out of the oven and let it cool completely in the tin. Once cooled, carefully peel off the parchment lining and then wrap the cake snugly in cling film and foil.
Your Christmas cake will keep beautifully for several months if stored properly, developing even richer flavors over time. This makes it perfect to prepare well in advance and decorate when the festive season arrives. Patience really pays off with this cake , the longer it sits, the more delicious it becomes! Enjoy every step of making this classic British treat.
Pairs Well With
