The Perfect Traditional Christmas Cake
I have been wanting to make a traditional Christmas Cake loaded with dry fruits and redolent with rum and spices for a long time now. This year I finally made it and it turned out to be quite a delight!
Ingredients
Dry Fruits I Used (Total 750 gms)
- 100 Gms Glace Cherries
- 100 Gms Sultanas
- 100 Gms Raisins
- 50 Gms Currants
- 150 Gms Dried Apricots
- 150 Gms Dried Figs
- 100 Gms Dried Cranberries
Alcohol I Used
- 300 ml Rum
Ingredients for the Cake
- 180 gms + 3tbsp APF or Maida
- 100 Gms Ground Almonds
- 225 Gms Butter
- 250 Gms Brown Sugar
- 2 tsp Mixed Spice (I used 3/4 tsp Cinnamon powder, 1/2 tsp Clove Powder, 1/4 tsp Mace, 1/4 nutmeg, 1/4 Soonth or Dried Ginger Powder)
- 1 tsp Baking Powder
- 4 Eggs
- Zest of 1 Lemon
- Zest of 1 Orange
Instructions
Method to Soak the Dry Fruits for a Christmas Cake
- Chop the apricots, figs, and cherries to small pieces.
- In a large glass bowl, mix together all the dry fruits.
- Pour the rum over them and mix well.
- Transfer the rum soaked dry fruits into a glass bottle.
- Close the lid and store away from sunlight.
- Let the dry fruits soak in rum for 1 to 10 days. I soaked my dry fruits for 10 days.
- Mix the dry fruits with a dry spoon every day.
Method to Prepare the Cake Pan This is very important.
- Line the cake tin with 2 layers of parchment paper (also called butter paper).
- Now tie 2 layers of newspaper on the outside such that the edge of the newspaper is about 1.5" above the edge of the cake tin.
Method to Make the Cake
- Preheat the oven to 125°C.
- Drain and save all the liquid from the dry fruit. I let it sit in a colander for 2 hours.
- Toss the dry fruit in 3 tbsp APF. Set aside. This helps in preventing the dry fruit from sinking to the bottom of the cake.
- Cream the butter and sugar.
- Incorporate the eggs (one at a time).
- Add the ground almonds, mixed spice, and zests of lemon and orange.
- Mix well.
- Add the APF and baking powder.
- Mix well.
- Fold in the APF-coated soaked dry fruits.
- Ensure that all dry fruits are well-incorporated into the batter.
- Transfer the Christmas Cake batter into the lined cake tin.
- Level the batter.
- Bake at 125°C for about 1 hr 45 mins, or till the skewer comes out clean.
Method to Feed the Cake
- Let the cake cool.
- Remove from the cake tin.
- Unwrap and discard the parchment paper.
- Poke holes in the cake with a skewer but not through and through.
- Pour about 2 tbsp of the rum that you drained from the dry fruits over the surface of the cake.
- Let the cake absorb the rum.
- Wrap the Traditional Christmas Cake in fresh parchment paper.
- Every 4-5 days, unwarp the cake and feed it. How may days you do this is entirely up to you. I intend to do it twice or thrice.