Traditional Christmas Cake

Whole Christmas cake topped with white icing, cranberries and rosemary on a cake stand.

Traditional British Christmas fruit cake made with soaked dried fruit, brown sugar, warm spices and orange zest. Make it with brandy or orange juice, then finish with marzipan and icing if you like.

Author: Amy Beth Reid

5 from 24 votes

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Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: British

Prep Time: 40

Cook Time: 4

Fruit Soaking Time: 1

Total Time: 1 4 40

Servings: large slices

Want cups or a different batch size? Use the controls below to switch between Metric (UK) and Cups (US) measurements, or adjust the Servings above to change the ingredient quantities. For the most accurate results, I recommend using grams and a digital scale. Serving adjustments are calculated automatically, so you may see some uneven quantities, like half of an egg. Baking times and tin sizes are based on the original recipe and may also need adjusting if you change the quantities.

INGREDIENTS

Metric (UK) • Cups (US)

450 g Currants
200 g Sultanas
200 g Raisins
150 g Glacé Cherries (halved)
75 g Dried Mixed Peel
Zest of 1 Orange
100-200 ml Orange Juice or Brandy (plus extra for feeding)
275 g Soft Margarine (or Butter) (at room temperature)
275 g Soft Dark Brown Sugar
5 Free-range Eggs (beaten; at room temperature; see Egg Size note below)
75 g Ground Almonds
350 g Plain Flour
1 tsp Mixed Spice
1 tsp Ground Cinnamon

To Decorate (Optional):

Marzipan
Fondant Icing or Royal Icing
Christmas Cake Decorations

Makes: 20cm round, 10cm height

EQUIPMENT

INSTRUCTIONS

Soak the Fruit:

Put the currants, sultanas, raisins, cherries, mixed peel and orange zest into a large bowl. Add the brandy or orange juice and stir thoroughly. Cover and leave to soak overnight. Start with around 100ml for recently bought fruit, using up to 200ml for older, drier fruit. You can add a little more if the liquid is fully absorbed.
450 g Currants; 200 g Sultanas; 200 g Raisins; 150 g Glacé Cherries; 75 g Dried Mixed Peel; Zest of 1 Orange; 100-200 ml Orange Juice or Brandy

The Next Day:

Preheat your oven to 150°C (130°C for fan-assisted ovens, Gas Mark 2 or 300°F). Grease and double-line a 20cm (8 inch) round cake tin with greaseproof paper. Set aside.
Prepare a length of brown paper long enough to wrap around the outside of the tin, folded over to provide an extra layer. It should stand a couple of inches above the rim. Have cotton string ready to secure it, and a separate piece of greaseproof paper large enough to cover the cake. Set aside.
In a large bowl (separate from the one you have your fruit soaking in), cream together your butter/margarine and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time, ensuring each is mixed through before adding the next. Mix in the ground almonds.
275 g Soft Margarine (or Butter); 275 g Soft Dark Brown Sugar; 5 Free-range Eggs; 75 g Ground Almonds
Sift in your flour, mixed spice and cinnamon before mixing together to create a somewhat thick batter.
350 g Plain Flour; 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon; 1 tsp Mixed Spice
Combine the cake batter with the soaked dried fruit, mixing until all the fruit is well-coated. Transfer the mixture to your pre-lined cake tin and spread it to the edges. Using a spoon, create a slight dip in the centre of the cake (this helps prevent it from doming on top).
Wrap the brown paper around the outside of the tin and secure with string. Dampen the separate piece of , gently squeeze out excess water and drape it over the cake. Place the tin on a flat baking tray.
Bake for 3½-4 hours. Check your cake after 3 hours. If the cake appears to be baking too quickly, reduce the oven temperature a little. A skewer inserted into the centre should come out clean when the cake is baked through.
Remove your cake from the oven and allow it to cool completely in the tin. Once completely cool, remove the cake from the tin but keep the greaseproof paper lining on the cake. Cover the top of the cake with extra and wrap well in cling film and tin foil. Keep the cake somewhere safe to mature before decorating for Christmas.

Feeding the Cake (Optional):

With alcohol: Poke a few holes in the top with a skewer and brush over 1-2 tablespoons of brandy. Repeat approximately every 7-14 days, wrapping carefully after each feed. Stop feeding about a week before decorating.
With orange juice: Use freshly squeezed orange juice sparingly, giving just one or two small feeds within the 7-10 days before decorating. Leave the final few days free from feeding so the surface can dry. Do not follow the regular alcohol-feeding schedule, as repeated juice feeds could cause the cake to spoil.

Decorating:

Once the cake is completely cool and the top has dried after feeding, cover with marzipan followed by fondant or royal icing, before adding some festive decorations to finish.
Marzipan; Fondant Icing or Royal Icing; Christmas Cake Decorations

IMPORTANT NOTE:

All my recipes are developed using a digital scale and the metric system (grams and millilitres). Cup measurements are available as a conversion, but these, unfortunately, won't always be as accurate. For best results, I always recommend baking with a digital scale.

RECIPE NOTES:

Different tin sizes: These quantities are for a deep 20cm (8 inch) round tin. You can use my FREE Christmas Cake Size Guide for quantities (in grams and cups) and baking times for other round and square tins.

Egg size: I use mixed-weight free-range eggs, usually around a UK medium-sized egg, roughly equivalent to a US large-sized egg.

Ground almonds: If omitting the ground almonds, do not replace them with extra flour. Soak the fruit as instructed and follow the appropriate feeding guidance to help make up for the reduced moisture.

SHOW NUTRITION INFO: HIDE NUTRITION INFO:

Nutrition information is provided as a guide and is based on automatic calculations. Actual values may vary depending on the ingredients and brands used, how the recipe is prepared, and individual portion or serving sizes.