This cake is quick and easy, good enough to give as a gift, tasty enough to want to make two!
It only needs one day to cool and then it's ready to devour.
Bonus: contents are nutritious and wholesome.
Serves 20.
Ingredients:
125g butter or low fat spread
1/2 cup dark-brown sugar
1/3 cup golden syrup
2/3 cup rum/ sherry/ brandy/ port/ marsala or a combination ( I didn't have enough rum so topped up the 2/3rds with marsala and brandy essence as my rum was white and lacking that great Christmas flavour. But you do need the fortified stuff.
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1 and 1/2 cups of sultanas
1/2 cup chopped prunes
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1/2 cup glace cherries coarsely chopped or you could use cranberries if you don't have the cherries.
1 cup currants
1 cup pitted cooking dates, chopped.
2 eggs lightly beaten
1 cup wholemeal flour
1/2 cup almond meal ( ground almonds)
1/2 cup white flour
1 teaspoon of baking powder.
small packet of slivered almonds (or whole blanched)
apricot jam if you want to glaze it.
2. Line base and sides of a 20cm round or square cake tin with 2 layers of baking paper.
Let the paper stand 5 cm above the top edge of the tin
3. Place butter or spread, sugar, 3/4 cup of water, golden syrup, mixed spice, all the fruit and half the alcohol in a large saucepan.
4. Bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer for 2 minutes.
5. Remove from heat, let it cool.
6. Stir in the beaten eggs and flours and meal.
7. Spoon mix carefully into the tin, smoothing it a little.
8. Decorate with nuts, pushing them gently into the mix a little way.
Remove from the oven and brush top with the remaining alcohol.
Cover the hot cake in tinfoil, tightly and leave until completely cool before removing from the tin.
Then wrap it in the foil again.
You can microwave, to warm, a little apricot jam to make the top shiny ( brush it on gently)
Have a very HAPPY CHRISTMAS!
