Fruit Cake Recipe

Fruit cake is perfect as a little treat with a cup of tea, and makes a fantastic centrepiece at any celebration too. We've made sure to include all the favourite fruit cake ingredients in this recipe like ground cinnamon and plenty of dried fruits. We've also added in a few chopped nuts to give taste and texture and of course there's plenty of citrus peel to cut through the other rich flavours.

HOW TO MAKE FRUIT CAKE

To test if a cake is baked; it should feel firm, have begun to shrink from the side of the tin, and a skewer inserted in the centre should come out cleanly. If any sticky cake mixture is on the skewer return the cake to the oven to continue cooking

Find more Christmas cake recipes here

Ingredients

• 150g (5oz) glace cherries
• 350g (12oz) plain flour
• 300g (10oz) currants
• 500g (1lb 2oz) sultanas
• 150g (5oz) raisins
• 100g (4oz) mixed peel
• 100g (4oz) chopped mixed nuts
• 2 tsp mixed spice
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla or almond essence
• grated rind 1 unwaxed lemon
• grated rind 1 unwaxed orange
• 300g (10oz) butter
• 300g (10oz) light muscovado sugar
• 6 medium eggs

you will need

• 20cm square or 23cm round cake, greased and double lined with baking parchment

Method

1. Set the oven at 150c/130fan/gas2.

2. Halve, rinse and dry the cherries, then place them in a large mixing bowl with the flour (reserve 1-2 tbsp ) and everything except the butter, sugar and eggs.

3. In an other large bowl beat the butter and sugar until light, creamy and pale in colour. Beat the eggs, and gradually whisk into the butter and sugar beating well after each addition. Add the reserved 2 tablespoons of flour which will help prevent it curdling. Mix the butter and sugar mixture into the dried fruit, stirring well t0 ensure that everything is well mixed, the spread into the baking tin and smooth the top .

4. Place in the centre of the bowl and bake for 30 minutes, then reduce the oven temperature to 1140c/fan120c/gas 1 and continue to cook for a further 3 hours (double check) until dark golden and firm to the touch. Leave the cake to cool completely in the tin. then turn out.