If you're after an easy Christmas cake recipe, you can't beat this one. We've actually used three different types of sugar to boost the flavour profile of this cake, along with some quirky flavours including sour cherry and ginger. For a boozy hit, it's got to be Armagnac.
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Yields:
30 - 35 serving(s)
Prep Time:
30 mins
Cook Time:
3 hrs 30 mins
Total Time:
4 hrs
Cal/Serv:
251
Ingredients
500g
(1lb 2oz) each sultanas and raisins
250g
(9oz) Agen prunes, roughly chopped
100g
bag dried sour cherries
150ml
(¼ pint) Armagnac, plus extra to drizzle
Finely grated zest and juice 1 lemon and 1 orange
100g
(3½oz) molasses sugar
150g
(5oz) dark brown sugar
250g
pack unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing
4
large eggs, beaten
250g
(9oz) plain flour
1Tbsp.
black treacle
1½ tsp mixed spice
½ tsp ginger
Directions
Step 1
Put the fruit into a non-metallic bowl with the Armagnac, citrus zest and juices. Cover and leave to soak overnight.
Step 2
Preheat the oven to 150°C (130°C fan) mark 2. Grease and line a 23cm (9in) cake tin with greaseproof paper. Put the sugar and butter into a large bowl and, using an electric hand whisk, beat until light and fluffy.
Step 3
Beat in the eggs, a little at a time, taking care the mixture doesn't curdle. If it looks as if it might, add a little of the flour. Beat in the black treacle.
Step 4
Sift the flour, spices and a pinch of salt into the mixture, then fold in gently with a large metal spoon. Next, fold in the soaked fruit. Tip the mixture into the prepared tin and level the surface.
Step 5
Wrap a double layer of brown paper around the outer edge of the tin - this helps prevent the cake from burning. Bake for 3-3½hr until a skewer comes out clean. Leave in the tin for 10min, then turn out and cool on a wire rack. Keep the cake in the greaseproof paper, wrap it in clingfilm, then in foil. Store in an airtight container in a cool place.
Step 6
After two weeks of maturing, prick the cake with a metal skewer and drizzle over 1tbsp Armagnac. Leave to soak in, then rewrap and store as before. The cake will keep for up to three months.
A crack team of highly skilled food content producers, the GH Kitchen Team are Good Housekeeping’s resident recipe developers and all-round food obsessives. GH Kitchen Director Sarah Akhurstis our resident hosting pro and loves nothing more than putting on a foodie feast for friends. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time. With a wealth of professional kitchen experience between them, they’re dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work every single time.
