SUITS-ALL CHRISTMAS CAKE

Suits-all Christmas cake image

Give the classic Christmas fruitcake a makeover with cinnamon, rose, orange blossom and tropical mango for a fruity and fragrant cake

Provided by Sarah Cook

Categories Afternoon tea, Dessert, Treat

Time 3h50m

Yield Makes 1 x 20cm or 22cm round or square cake (each cuts into 20 pieces)

Number Of Ingredients 20

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Ingredients

zest 1 orange or 2 clementines , plus 100m juice
zest 2 lemons , plus 100ml juice
1 tbsp orange blossom water
1 tsp rosewater
3 tbsp clear honey
200g glacé cherries
200g mixed peel
200g dried apricots , diced
175g golden sultanas
140g dried cranberries or sour cherries, or a mix
100g dried mango , diced
280g butter at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
140g golden caster sugar
140g light muscovado sugar
4 large eggs , beaten
250g plain flour
100g ground almonds
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp orange blossom water
50ml orange juice

Steps:

Mix together the orange and lemon zests and juice, the orange blossom water, rosewater and honey in a large bowl. Stir in all of the dried fruit, cover and leave overnight to soak.
The next day, heat oven to 160C/140C fan/ gas 3. Grease and double-line a 22cm round or square cake tin (for a flatter cake) or a 20cm round or square tin (for a deeper cake) with baking parchment. In another big bowl, beat the butter and sugars together with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one by one, then fold in the flour, almonds and cinnamon.
Tip in the soaked fruits and any juices left in the bowl, and stir in. Spoon the mix into the prepared tin and level the top. If you want your cake flat rather than slightly rounded, make a gradual dip in the centre of the mix with the back of a wooden spoon. Bake for 1 hr 30 mins, then turn the oven down to 140C/120C fan/gas 1 and bake for another 1 hr 30 mins for 22cm cakes, or 1 hr 50 mins for 20cm cakes, until a skewer poked into the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tin, sitting on a wire rack.
While the cake is still warm, mix together the feeding ingredients, pepper the cake with holes using a thin skewer and spoon over the liquid. If you're making the cake ahead of time, feed once a week for up to 4 weeks. Keep well wrapped in parchment, inside an airtight container, for up to 1 month. If you're not getting ahead, this cake tastes just as delicious a day or two after baking.

Nutrition Facts : Calories 396 calories, Fat 16 grams fat, SaturatedFat 8 grams saturated fat, Carbohydrate 57 grams carbohydrates, Sugar 46 grams sugar, Fiber 3 grams fiber, Protein 5 grams protein, Sodium 0.4 milligram of sodium