Picnic Fruit Cake (Christmas Cake)

Makes a 23cm cake

Picnic Fruit Cake (Christmas Cake) Photo: Supplied

This recipe is loosely based on food writer Lois Daish’s Christmas cake recipe, which I have adapted to suit my family’s taste. Since taking over the making of our family Christmas cake from Mum, I have been trying a different recipe every year. Dad claimed this to be the best to date, so this is now the one. I double the recipe when making it for Christmas. Wrapping the cake in the brandy-soaked cheesecloth is brilliant — thank you, Lois. Take the cake on a picnic with a wedge of excellent local cheddar cheese and a few crisp apples.

Ingredients

• 400g raisins
• 200g golden raisins
• 200g sultanas
• 200g currants
• 50g chopped candied lemon peel
• 50g orange marmalade
• 4 tablespoons brandy, plus extra for drizzling and storing
• 250g high-grade flour
• 1 teaspoon ground mixed spice
• 200g butter, softened
• 200g soft brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon golden syrup or molasses
• 4 large free-range eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• finely grated zest of 1 orange
• finely grated zest of 1 lemon
• large square of cheesecloth

Method

In a large bowl, combine the dried fruit, peel, marmalade and brandy. Cover and leave overnight.

The next day, preheat the oven to 160°C.

Grease and line a 23cm square cake tin with a double layer of baking paper. Tie a doubled layer of brown paper around the outside of the tin. Sit the tin on a doubled layer of brown paper or a thick, flat layer of newspaper.

Sift the flour and mixed spice together and set aside.

In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the golden syrup or molasses. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. If the mixture begins to curdle after adding the last egg, then add 1 tablespoon of the sifted flour to stabilise the mixture.

Add the vanilla extract. Stir in the orange and lemon zest. Sift the flour and mixed spice once more into the creamed mixture and fold in the brandy-soaked fruit.

Spoon into the prepared tin and smooth the top. Place in the oven (with the tin sitting on the paper) and bake for 1¼ hours. Lower the oven temperature to 150°C and bake for a further 30 minutes. Insert a skewer into the centre of the cake — if it comes out clean then the cake is cooked.

Remove the cake from the oven and leave to cool in the tin. While the cake is hot, drizzle a little extra brandy over the surface.

Store the cake, wrapped in brandy-soaked cheesecloth, in an airtight container for 4 weeks before cutting.