English Christmas Cake

2 Reviews

Prep: 15 min
Cook: 4 hr
Ready In: 12 hr 15 min

“This English Christmas cake is lovely in texture and taste. It just has one difference -- no chopped mixed peel.” - by SCOTT LEANING

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Metric US

Original recipe yields 1 - 9 inch square cake

Directions

Grease an 8 inch square baking dish and line it with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, mixed spice, cinnamon and lemon zest. Stir with a whisk until blended. In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing until each one is blended in. Stir in the dry ingredients just until moistened, then fold in the raisins, golden raisins, currants, cherries and almonds.
Spoon into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Make a slight impression in the center with the back of a spoon so the cake will turn out level. Cover and leave in a cool place overnight.
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Place the cake pan on a baking sheet.
Bake for 4 hours in the preheated oven. When the cake is done, a skewer inserted into the center should come out clean. Cool in the pan for 1 hour, then turn out onto a wire rack and remove the paper. When completely cool, poke with a skewer every inch or so, and spoon brandy into the holes. Wrap in waxed paper and store in a cool place until serving.

Nutrition

Amount Per Serving (16 total)

Calories
653 cal
33%

Fat
23 g
35%

Carbs
108.9 g
35%

Based on a 2,000 calorie diet

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Reviews (2)

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AEENJOY

Aug. 16, 2008

"Mmmmm, this is a delicious snack cake for the holiday season, but it also makes a great breakfast bread when company is over. However, I didn't choose to give this recipe a five star rating because of..." See more one small problem. In my opinion, this cake has an overload of spices. All of my family members commented on this being a rather strong cake. With mixed spice, cinnamon, and lemon zest, this cake is more than spicy. What I would recommend to others trying this recipe is to choose add the suggested amount of cinnamon and lemon zest, and leave out the mixed spice. With two spices, the mixed spice is fairly useless."

oscarkitty

Dec. 2, 2012

"This was my first attempt ever at a fruitcake. I panicked after I got it in the pan and realized it had no leavening! However, none of the other "English" Christmas cakes have any leavening at all, ..." See morebut all the fruitcakes call for some. Anyway, it was fine. A nice dense texture. I'm not so crazy about raisins so I substituted chopped dried mango, craisins, and dates for about half the raisins, I sort of wish I'd soaked the fruit in a bit of brandy beforehand, but maybe not. Perhaps in jolly old England they have crazy big 8" square pans, but I had to put this guy in a 9"x13" pan. I baked for 3 hours and it was perhaps a little overdone, but a nice almost caramelized crust on top. The almonds are fabulous in this, I wish I'd added a few more; I used slivered almonds. The taste is very rich and buttery. The texture is a bit dry, but very good with coffee or tea."

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