Christmas Minus Ten
Dec. 15th, 2008 10:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jaceyHave made two enormous Christmas Cakes yesterday and brandied them today - way late but now they're wrapped in foil and waiting to be marzipanned and iced. I make good Christmas Cake. Also have the Guinness and Whiskey fruit cake maturing nicely in foil - made a couple of weeks ago. That one doesn't get marzipanned and iced.
Of course all Christmas cake should be eaten with mature cheddar cheeese.
Christmas Cake
Jacey Bedford
Can be made well in advance. I can't claim to be the originator of this recipe, though altered it a bit because I dislike candied peel... but it was handed down to me by Evelyn (surname forgotten), in Barnsley Library ion 1975. Her mum cut it out of a magazine in the 1950s and adapted it. It was originally the recipe for Prince Charles' christening cake! Wherever it came from, it has done good service as a recipe for special occasions.
8oz butter or soft margarine
10oz dark brown sugar
5 eggs, (medium size)
8oz plain flour
4oz ground almonds
2lb dried fruit (I use a mix of sultanas, currants raisins)
4oz glacé cherries
4 tablespoons of brandy - at least. I use more! (Pour on after cooking)
Use a loose-bottomed square tin. There's enough mix here to make a fairly shallow 10" cake, a chunkier 9" one or two shallow 8" cakes, (but reduce the cooking time for these or they'll be too dry).
1) Cream the butter (or margarine) and brown sugar.
2) Add the eggs one at a time and mix in thoroughly. (To prevent the mix from curdling add a spoonful of flour from the measured quantity with each egg.)
3) Fold in the rest of the flour and the ground almonds.
4) Add the fruit and glacé cherries and mix well.
5) Place the mixture in a prepared, lined, loose-bottomed cake tin (or tins). Shape a slight hollow in the centre so you get a level finish when the cake rises. (Note it doesn't rise much.)
6) (Fight the kids to see who gets to lick out the bowl! Decide to share it equally.)
7) Bake at 275ºF - Approx. 140ºC/ Gas Mark 1 - for about three to four hours depending on the size of tin you use and how "fast" your oven is.
8) When cool, pierce the cake all over with a skewer and dribble the brandy into the holes to let it soak in. (Use cheap brandy, the cake isn't fussy... and you'll be able to be more liberal with it. I always use lots more than the recipe says.) Leave the paper round the cake until after this process, otherwise some of the brandy dribbles over the edge.
9) Remove the paper, add marzipan and icing as and if required. Yum!
All the usual caveats re nut allergies. It DOES contain nuts (in case you couldn't work that out for yourself).
Of course all Christmas cake should be eaten with mature cheddar cheeese.
Christmas CakeJacey Bedford
Can be made well in advance. I can't claim to be the originator of this recipe, though altered it a bit because I dislike candied peel... but it was handed down to me by Evelyn (surname forgotten), in Barnsley Library ion 1975. Her mum cut it out of a magazine in the 1950s and adapted it. It was originally the recipe for Prince Charles' christening cake! Wherever it came from, it has done good service as a recipe for special occasions.
8oz butter or soft margarine
10oz dark brown sugar
5 eggs, (medium size)
8oz plain flour
4oz ground almonds
2lb dried fruit (I use a mix of sultanas, currants raisins)
4oz glacé cherries
4 tablespoons of brandy - at least. I use more! (Pour on after cooking)
Use a loose-bottomed square tin. There's enough mix here to make a fairly shallow 10" cake, a chunkier 9" one or two shallow 8" cakes, (but reduce the cooking time for these or they'll be too dry).
1) Cream the butter (or margarine) and brown sugar.
2) Add the eggs one at a time and mix in thoroughly. (To prevent the mix from curdling add a spoonful of flour from the measured quantity with each egg.)
3) Fold in the rest of the flour and the ground almonds.
4) Add the fruit and glacé cherries and mix well.
5) Place the mixture in a prepared, lined, loose-bottomed cake tin (or tins). Shape a slight hollow in the centre so you get a level finish when the cake rises. (Note it doesn't rise much.)
6) (Fight the kids to see who gets to lick out the bowl! Decide to share it equally.)
7) Bake at 275ºF - Approx. 140ºC/ Gas Mark 1 - for about three to four hours depending on the size of tin you use and how "fast" your oven is.
8) When cool, pierce the cake all over with a skewer and dribble the brandy into the holes to let it soak in. (Use cheap brandy, the cake isn't fussy... and you'll be able to be more liberal with it. I always use lots more than the recipe says.) Leave the paper round the cake until after this process, otherwise some of the brandy dribbles over the edge.
9) Remove the paper, add marzipan and icing as and if required. Yum!
All the usual caveats re nut allergies. It DOES contain nuts (in case you couldn't work that out for yourself).
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no subject
Date: Dec. 15th, 2008 11:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: Dec. 16th, 2008 12:21 am (UTC)no subject
Date: Dec. 16th, 2008 06:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: Dec. 16th, 2008 06:37 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: Dec. 16th, 2008 03:04 am (UTC)Jacey cooking....
Did I mention, I have new boots?
If you can save us a bit of cake to taste in February that would be awfully nice of you but if not, we understand... sniff...
no subject
Date: Dec. 16th, 2008 06:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: Dec. 16th, 2008 11:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: Dec. 16th, 2008 08:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: Dec. 16th, 2008 06:40 pm (UTC)For those who have never tried cheese with heavy fruit cake, you eat them together, a bit of cheese, a bit of cake in the same mouthful. Don't be scared. It works.