Best Cathedral Window Fruitcake Recipes

CATHEDRAL WINDOW CAKE

Steps:

• 1. Grease and flour a large tube pan or Bundt pan. Set aside. Preheat oven to 250°.
• 2. In a medium bowl, with a rotary mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth.
• 3. Add eggs to the butter/sugar mixture, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Set aside.
• 4. In a separate small bowl, stir the baking soda and buttermilk together until soda is dissolved. Add this to the creamed butter/sugar/eggs mixture. Mix well with rotary mixer, and set aside.
• 5. Place flour in a large bowl (you might want to use a clean dish pan). Add the chopped dates, chopped jellied candies, nuts and coconut. Stir these well, coating each piece, so the dates and jellied candies don't clump and stick to themselves.
• 6. Add the creamed butter/sugar/eggs/buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture. This makes a very stiff dough, and should be mixed with the hands. When it is well mixed, put it into the prepared tube or Bundt pan.
• 7. Bake at 250° for 2 hrs. 10 mins., to 2 hrs. 30 minutes ... check for doneness, as ovens do vary and this cake is in the low oven for quite awhile!
• 8. Combine the orange juice and powdered sugar. Mix well to dissolve all the powdered sugar, then pour over the hot cake in the pan. Allow to stand in pan overnight.

CATHEDRAL CHRISTMAS CAKE

Steps:

• Method.
• Heat oven to 130°C (120°C fanbake), with rack just below the middle. Completely line a 20 or 30cm ring pan, or two medium-sized loaf pans with baking paper or liners.
• Measure out the nuts, cherries and crystallised and dried fruits into a large container, putting some aside for decorating the top. Cut up large pieces of fruit, but leave some long thin pieces if desired, especially if using melon strips (which give a wonderful colour).
• In a large bowl mix eggs, sugar and vanilla. Mix in the sifted flour, baking powder and salt until smooth. Add nuts and fruit and mix thoroughly by hand.
• Press evenly into the prepared cake pan/s (if pan is lined with baking paper coat evenly with non-stick spray just before use). Press reserved cherries, fruit and nuts into the top for decoration (if adding strips of crystallised fruit, put them in place after adding part of the cake mixture, then cover with remaining mixture). Bake for two to three hours until cake feels firm when pressed in the middle. Cool, remove from pan and peel away liner/s. Brush all over with rum, brandy or whisky. Brush the top with a light coating of oil for a shine. Store at room temperature in greaseproof paper, or refrigerate in a plastic bag. This cake will keep well for several months (after long storage, brush again with spirits and leave 24 hours or longer before eating). Cut in thin slices with a sharp serrated knife.