Light and fruity Christmas cake
Impress your guests with this moist and juicy classic Christmas cake decorated with marzipan and fondant icing. Recipe and image from Foolproof Festive by Katie Marshall (£14, Quadrille). Photography: Rita Platts
Prep: 30 mins
Cook: 3 hrs 45 mins
plus overnight soaking
Serves: 12-14
Ingredients
- 800g dried mixed fruit
- 200g glacé cherries, chopped
- 150ml brandy (or strong tea)
- zest and juice of 1 large, unwaxed orange
- 250g salted butter, softened
- 100g dark muscovado sugar
- 150g soft light brown sugar
- 4 medium eggs, beaten
- 160g plain flour
- 2½ tsp ground mixed spice
- 100g ground almonds
- 100g toasted flaked almonds
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp apricot jam
- icing sugar, for dusting
- 500g golden marzipan
- 500g fondant icing
- edible gold dust (optional)
Method
Step 1
Warm the fruit, cherries, brandy (or tea), orange zest and juice in a medium pan over a low heat until steaming. Stir, then cool completely. Cover and refrigerate over night.
Step 2
Preheat the oven to 160°C/140°C fan/gas mark 3. Grease and double-line a deep, 20cm cake tin with baking paper. Wrap a double layer of newspaper around the outside (to prevent edges burning), securing with string.
Step 3
In a mixing bowl, use an electric whisk to beat the butter and sugars for 3-4 minutes, until pale and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing until incorporated. Sift in the flour and mixed spice, then add the ground almonds, flaked almonds and salt. Briefly mix, then add the soaked fruit and mix fully. Spoon into the prepared tin and make an indentation in the middle with the back of a spoon (to prevent doming while it bakes).
Step 4
Bake for 2 hours, then reduce the oven to 140°C/120°C fan/gas mark 1 and bake for another 1 hour 30 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool fully in the tin, then remove and wrap in cling film. Transfer to a storage tin, if not eating immediately.
Step 5
When ready to ice, turn the cake onto a serving plate. Warm the apricot jam and 1 tbsp water in a small pan. Use a pastry brush to brush over the sides and top of the cake.
Step 6
Dust a work surface with a little icing sugar, then roll out the marzipan to a 30cm circle. Carefully drape over the cake, smoothing over the top and around the sides. Trim away any overhang. If using edible gold dust, brush over the top before rolling, draping and smoothing the fondant icing as you did the marzipan.
Step 7
To decorate, use cookie cutters to carefully cut through the icing layer revealing the gold- dusted marzipan.
