Christmas Cake Recipe – Who Else Wants To Bake Like A Professional Baker?

Posted in MydeaMedia- Christmas Special Ed

Christmas cake recipe, the very mention of a Christmas cake recipe or even a Christmas cake will bring up visions of rich fruitcake for me and obviously this would vary for each person, but let me share my version of a Christmas cake recipe, a Christmas cake that is relished and appreciated by my family, friends, relatives and neighbours. Please give my Christmas cake recipe a try and keep me posted on how it turns out, but let me assure you that as a homemaker on a budget that you don’t need to wish for the moon and the stars, you can make your own delicious Christmas cake that will be loved by all right in the comfort of your kitchen using my own personal Christmas cake recipe.

For my version of the Christmas cake recipe, let me start with sharing the ingredients that you will need…

Christmas Cake Recipe

Christmas Cake Recipe Ingredients!

Plain flour 8 oz (225 g)
Butter (unsalted) 8 oz (225 g)
Soft brown sugar 8 oz (225 g)
Raisins 6 oz (175 g)
Sultanas 6 oz (175 g)
Currants 1 lb (450 g)
Glacé cherries (rinsed, dried and finely chopped) 2 oz (50 g)
Mixed candied peel (finely chopped) 2 oz (50 g)
Almonds (chopped) 2 oz (50 g)
Brandy 3 tablespoons and then some more for soaking into the cake
Salt one-fourths of a teaspoon (leveled)
Freshly grated nutmeg one-fourths of a teaspoon (leveled)
Mixed spice powder one-half teaspoon (leveled)
4 large eggs
Black treacle 1 dessertspoonful (leveled)
Grated zest of 1 small-sized lemon
Grated zest of 1 medium-sized orange

As you can see my version of the Christmas cake recipe makes use of very simple ingredients but my husband says the magic is in the mixing and I cannot complain seeing how he loves my Christmas cake recipe.

Now that we are done with the Christmas cake recipe let us take a look at the actual preparation of the Christmas cake itself.

Christmas Cake Recipe – The Method Behind The Madness

It is highly advisable for this Christmas cake recipe that you begin the preparation work for it a day prior to actually baking it. During this time, you can measure out the dried fruits as well as the mixed candied peel and place them both in a mixing bowl and stir mix the Brandy uniformly. Cover the mixing bowl with a clean cloth and set it aside for the dried fruits and the mixed candied peel to soak in the Brandy for up to 12 hours or more. That will set the foundation for some great Christmas cake. Being a housewife I have some additional time on my hands and I can understand it might be difficult for working women (and men too), but still if you take that one extra day in the preparation of my Christmas cake recipe it will come out even more the better.

The next day of my Christmas cake recipe or in the other words the “bake day” pre-heat the oven to the Gas Mark 1 setting which is 275°F (135°C). Grease and line the base and the sides of the cake tin (or pan) with silicone paper (baking parchment). This cake tin can be 8 inches (20 cm) circular or 7 inches (18 cm) square for the cake measurements that I have given in my Christmas cake recipe. Next measure out all the remaining ingredients and do keep in mind the treacle will be easier to measure without the lid and placed in a skillet of barely simmering water. Next up, get started on the cake by sifting the flour, the salt and the spices into a large mixing bowl. Once you are done with it, take up another large mixing bowl and cream the butter and the sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy. Keep it aside and take up yet another bowl and lightly beat the eggs in it and then add the beaten egg mixture to the creamed mixture of butter and sugar. Take your time while adding in the beaten eggs (preferably in small portions) to make sure the entire mixture does not curdle up on you. Keep this up till the entire beaten egg mixture is incorporated into the mixture of butter and sugar. By now you must be thinking that my Christmas cake recipe sure is a lot of work! Yes it is, but it is also the perfect Christmas cake recipe.

: Christmas Cake Recipe

Well continuing on with my Christmas cake recipe, make use of a spatula to fold in the sifted flour and the spices very gently using the cut and fold method to prevent loss of any air. Now you can fold in the dry fruits and the candied peel soaked in Brandy from the previous day, along with the chopped nuts, the treacle, and the grated zest of orange and lemon. Next transfer the cake mixture to the prepared cake tin and spread it out evenly with the use of a spatula. If you do not plan to ice the cake, you can delicately drop a few whole blanched almonds at the top of the cake mixture. Finally, cover the top of the cake mixture with a double square portion of silicone paper leaving open a tiny hole in the middle. This ensures extra protection through the extensive and slow baking process that my Christmas cake recipe goes through and trust me it will come out tasting great.

The final pièce de résistance of my Christmas cake recipe. Bake the cake on the lowest rack of your oven for 4 straight hours before pulling it out and testing it with a skewer. Continue baking as required for an extra hour (can be anywhere from 30 minutes to 1 hour) all the while checking every 10-15 minutes until such time as the skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Once the cake is baked proper, go ahead and remove the cake from the oven and let it cool for around 30 minutes in the cake tin and then place it over a wire rack to finish the cooling process. Once the cake has completely cooled down, make tiny entry holes at the top of the cake with the help of a cocktail stick or using a small skewer and spoon over a few teaspoons of Brandy and let the cake soak it in. Finally, wrap the cake in double silicone paper and secure it with a rubber band or a thread and store it in an airtight container. You can continue to spoon the cake with a few teaspoons of Brandy once every week for a period of 3-4 weeks to give the cake a rich and moist taste and that will ensure you will enjoy my Christmas cake recipe for many days to come.

Go ahead and give this cake recipe a try… If you love my Christmas cake recipe then I am sure you will agree it is a wonderful cake recipe.

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Sunday, 18 December 2011