Arrghhh! How did it to November already?? Lewis mentioned earlier this week that there are only 7 more weekends until Christmas. What??? I still haven’t put my flip-flops away from Summer yet. After being faced with the reality that I’m going to have to start thinking about Christmas trees, house decorations, food and presents pretty rapidly, I decided to get going with my first festive tradition - the Christmas cake. In fact, I usually end up making one main cake, another smaller version for my mum and dad, and then two even smaller versions for the kids to decorate. I’ve even been known to make an additional one for Chris to eat right away - fruit cake fiend that he is.
How to make it
No soaking of fruit, sugar & butter creaming, beating in flour etc. This allows the flavours meld together deliciously. During this time, you should also feed the cake with a tablespoon of rum/whisky/brandy (or my personal favourites - cherry brandy and/or amaretto) once a week or so. This helps to build and intensify the flavour of the cake, and will ensure it’s beautifully moist. You can start this process by baking a two or three months in advance - but who wants to start baking for Christmas when the September sunshine is still blazing! Personally, I think early November is perfect, as we’re just starting to feel a little Christmassy, and I know I’ll be able to give the cake at least 4 or 5 feedings before I decorate it. Most of the work is done by bubbling things up in a pan (into the pan goes butter, brown sugar, dried fruit (I like mixed dried fruit including cranberries), glace cherries, orange zest and juice, lemon zest and cherry brandy) for 10 minutes. Then we leave to cool for a few minutes before adding in ground almonds and 3 eggs. Stir together, then add in flour, baking powder, mixed spice, cinnamon and allspice and fold it all together with a wooden spoon. Line a 23cm (9 inch) cake tin (check out my video just above the recipe card for tips on how to do this) and spoon in the cake mix. Then bake in the oven at 150C/300F for 45 minutes, then 140C/275F for a further 60-75 minutes - until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Once it comes out of the oven, we skewer the hot cake all over - about 20 times, then spoon over another couple of tablespoons of cherry brandy.
How to Store Christmas Cake
After the initial feeding you want to double wrap the rich fruit cake in baking parchment, then double wrap again in foil and place in a tin.
Feeding the Cake
You can feed the Christmas cake once a week or so with a tablespoon or two of cherry brandy right up until a few days before you’re ready to ice the cake (presuming that you are going to ice the cake). Beware, this cake does contain a reasonable amount of cherry brandy - both in the cake mix and through feeding the cake more brandy afterwards. Personally, I don’t think you can taste the actual alcohol - it just gives the cake a more rich and fruity flavour and moist texture. If you want a non-alcoholic version, you can check out my suggestions further down this post. That’s it - one cake that you’ll want to eat every time you open it up to feed it. Resist that temptation! I usually marzipan and ice my cake a few days before Christmas. Sometimes we just can’t wait though, and that cake has to be eaten as it is!Want to see what the cake looks like inside? Here you go:
Do you need to soak the fruit first?
A lot of people suggest that you need to do this, but you don’t need to for this Christmas cake recipe. The simmering of the fruit with the alcohol, butter and orange juice will ensure the fruit is plump and juicy.
What is the best alcohol to put in a Christmas cake?
A reasonably strong spirit (such as whisky, rum or brandy) with a warm, fiery flavour or a sweet liqueur (such as cherry brandy or amaretto - NOT a cream liqueur) will compliment the flavour of the cake, and help to preserve the cake, so it will keep for longer. You can use standard rum, whisky or brandy. I wouldn’t use the most expensive variety - the sugar in the cake and the sugars in the fruit add a lot of sweet richness to the cake, so it’s difficult to tell the difference between an expensive brand or a cheaper brand of spirit anyway. Personally, I like to use spirits that have a bit of a Christmas feel to them. Cherry brandy, amaretto, orange liqueur (Cointreau or Grand Marnier) and spiced rum (such as Kraken rum) are my favourites. You can use one of these, or alternate between a couple of spirits - i.e. cherry brandy and amaretto flavours work great together for a subtle cherry-almond sweetness to the cake.
Can I make my Christmas cake without alcohol?
For a non-alcoholic version, you can replace the alcohol with cold tea, fresh orange or apple juice.You can then feed the cake with either:
Cold teaFresh orange or apple juiceGinger cordial mixed with water (2 tsp mixed with 2 tbsp water)Rum flavouring mixed with water (⅛ tsp mixed with 2 tbsp water).
If you do this, don’t make the cake any earlier than November, as juice (as opposed to alcohol) could start tasting funny after more than a couple of months.
Watch how to make it
This post was first published in November 2015. Updated in November 2019 with new photos, video and tips. Updated Oct 2020 with more tips and for housekeeping reasons.
Fancy Some More Christmas Baking?
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