Easy Christmas Cake

Don't think you can't make your own Christmas cake, you can. You will need a few hours to prepare and bake it, though the preparation of this one is much quicker than other recipes. You will need about four hours spare from start to it being baked, but it is well worth it.

Even though this must be the easiest Christmas cake to make it is just as delicious as a more complicated one.

Here are a few tips before you begin:

Make your cake at least 8 weeks before Christmas for the best flavour.

Always prepare your tin first, lightly grease a 24cm round or 20cm square tin. Line it with baking paper and wrap aluminium foil around the outside, squeezing it in around to fit the tin.

Weigh out all ingredients and set them out ready to use.

Preheat the oven just prior to mixing the cake.

Have ready a bowl to mix the cake in and one to mix the fruit and flour together.

Ingredients

225g butter, at room temperature

225g soft brown sugar

1 tablespoon black treacle

Zest and juice of 1 lemon

265g plain flour

2 rounded teaspoons baking powder

1 level teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ -1 teaspoon mixed spice

½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1kg dried fruit to your taste, raisins, currants, sultanas, cranberries, pineapple etc

200g glace cherries, halved

50g ground almonds

50g chopped almonds

5 eggs, beaten

Brandy to feed the cake after cooking

1.Preheat the oven to 160C/gas mark 3/320F

2.Cream the butter, sugar and treacle together in a large bowl.

3.Sift in 4 tablespoons of the flour, then beat in the eggs, lemon zest and juice.

4.Sift the flour, baking powder and spice together in a bowl and add the fruit and nuts. Mix everything well together and the fruit is coated in the flour.

5.Stir this evenly into the creamed mixture using a metal spoon.

6.Spoon the cake mixture into the prepared tin, pressing down gently and making a depression in the centre. This will level the top of the cake so help with the icing later on.

7.Tie a double layer of brown paper or greaseproof around the outside of the tin to protect the cake from over browning on the outside.

8.Turn the oven down to 150C/gas mark 2/300F. Place the cake on a baking sheet and place in the centre of the oven. Bake for 30 minutes then turn the heat down again to 140C/gas mark 1/280F and cook for a further 2 hours.

After this time check to see if the centre of the cake is cooked by pressing a metal skewer into the cake. If it comes out clean and free of cake mixture it is cooked. If not bake for a further 20 minutes and test again.

9.When cooked leave in the tin for 1 hour, then remove from tin and place on a cooling rack still with the paper on. Leave for another 30 minutes before removing the paper.

10.When completely cool prick the upper surface of the cake with a skewer and trickle 3-4 tablespoons of brandy down the holes. Wrap in greaseproof paper then a layer of foil and store in an airtight tin.

11.Feed the cake once more after 2 weeks then repeat this once more two weeks later.

About 3 days before you wish to ice the cake put a layer of marzipan over either the top or the entire upper surface and sides of the cake.

300g is sufficient to top the cake or 500g will cover the whole cake.