Christmas Fruit Cake
The perfect moist and flavourful fruit cake for Christmas
Ingredients
- 700 ml Mixed cake fruit
- 125 g Glazed cherries (you can use cherries that have been soaked in cherry liqueur or in bandy or sherry)
- 125 g Dates Shredded
- 50 g Walnuts OR 1 kg fruitcake mixture with added cherries, dates, and walnuts
- 250 ml Sugar
- 5 ml Baking soda
- 125 ml Butter
- 300 ml Water
- 125 ml Cooking oil
- 5 ml Mixed spices
- 10 ml Cinnamon
- 3 ml Nutmeg
- 500 ml Cake flour Sifted
- 5 ml Salt
- 7.5 ml Baking powder
- 2 Eggs Well beaten
- 5 ml Rum flavouring or caramel or 20 ml Rum For the essence
Instructions
- The batter is for a 1 x 22 cm pan.
- Note: It is essential that the pan is lined thoroughly with paper, to ensure the fruit will not burn. You can also make the recipe 1 1/2 times and bake 3 x 18 cm cakes.
- Boil the fruits, cherries, dates, sugar, baking soda, butter, oil, and water for 25 minutes over slow heat. Stir constantly to prevent it from burning. Remove from the heat and allow to cool for a while.
- Preheat Oven to 160ºC / 320 º F ( Fan ovens 10 degrees less)
- Add the seasoning and essence to the beaten eggs. Set aside.
- Sift all the dry ingredients together.
- Add the dry ingredients to the fruit and mix, add the egg mixture slowly and mix thoroughly.
- Spoon the cake mixture into a greased cake tin lined with 3 layers of very well greased brown paper or baking paper and make a lid with a layer of foil to press over the top of the cake tin.
- Bake the cake for 1½ - 2 hours in a moderate oven at 160ºC / 320 º F ( Fan ovens 10 degrees less) or until the test pin comes out clean, the time will depend on the size of the cake.
- Remove the cake carefully and place it on the rack. Pour a tot or two of brandy, sherry, or cherry liqueur over and let stand until completely cooled. You can set the liquor alight when poured over to evaporate the bitterness of the alcohol.
- Cover with foil, add a little brandy, sherry, or cherry liquor every week for the next 4 weeks and turn the cake over so that the top is down again, this helps the moisture to spread nicely.