Description
This traditional British Christmas Cake is a rich, moist fruit cake infused with bourbon and fragrant spices. Loaded with mixed dried fruits, nuts, and aromatic zest, baked slowly to develop depth of flavor, and beautifully finished with marzipan and fondant for a festive touch. It’s perfect for celebrating the holiday season and improves in flavor with weekly feeding of rum.
Ingredients
Fruit Mix and Base
- 7 cups mixed dried fruit (raisins, sultanas, currants, chopped candied peel, chopped dried prunes, dried cranberries, etc.)
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup light brown sugar (firmly packed)
- ½ cup bourbon (plus extra for feeding the cake)
- 1 lemon (zest and juice)
- 1 orange (zest and juice)
Batter
- 4 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1¼ cup all purpose flour (or plain flour)
- 1½ cup ground almonds (or almond flour)
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground allspice
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
Decoration
- 16 oz marzipan (or almond paste, either golden or natural)
- 16 oz ready to roll fondant (or white sugar paste, plus extra for decoration)
- Powdered sugar (icing/confectioners sugar, for dusting)
- ¼ cup rindless orange preserve (or apricot jam)
Instructions
- Rehydrate Fruit: Place the mixed dried fruits, butter, brown sugar, lemon zest and juice, orange zest and juice, and ½ cup bourbon in a large pan. Cook over medium heat until the butter melts and the mixture boils. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes, then transfer to a large bowl and let cool for 30 minutes.
- Prepare Oven and Pan: Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C, 130°C fan). Line the bottom and sides of a deep 8″ or 9″ cake pan with double layers of parchment paper.
- Make Cake Batter: Once the fruit mixture is cooled, add the flour, ground almonds, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, vanilla extract, and eggs. Stir thoroughly with a spatula or wooden spoon, ensuring no lumps of flour remain.
- Bake the Cake: Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake on the lower rack of the oven for about 2 hours, or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
- Feed with Rum: Remove the cake from the oven and, while still warm, poke holes all over the top with a toothpick. Spoon a couple of tablespoons of rum over the surface and brush it to soak into the holes.
- Cool and Store: Let the cake cool in the pan, then remove it and peel off the parchment paper. Wrap the cake in parchment and store in an airtight container. Feed with 2 tablespoons of rum weekly until about one week before serving.
- Roll Marzipan: A few days after the last rum feeding, dust a countertop with powdered sugar and roll out the marzipan to about ¼” thickness, large enough to cover the cake.
- Prepare Cake for Decoration: Warm the orange preserve in a small saucepan until melted, then brush it over the top and sides of the cake.
- Apply Marzipan Layer: Carefully place the rolled marzipan onto the cake, smoothing it over the top and sides. Trim any excess edges for a neat fit.
- Roll and Apply Fondant: Roll out the fondant similarly, brush the marzipan layer again with warmed preserve, and cover with the fondant layer.
- Decorate: Use leftover fondant to create festive decorations like holly leaves and berries, attaching them with a little preserve or water.
Notes
- Feed the cake weekly with rum to enhance moisture and flavor, wrapping it tightly between feedings.
- You can substitute bourbon with dark rum or brandy according to preference.
- For best results, bake the cake at a low temperature slowly to retain moisture and develop flavor.
- This cake improves in taste the longer it is aged; start making it well in advance of the holiday.
- If you prefer a nut-free version, omit ground almonds but expect a slightly different texture.
- Ensure to line the cake pan with parchment on sides and bottom to prevent sticking and for easy removal.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 2 hours
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: British
