Christmas Cake

The women in my family have made some amazing Christmas Cakes through the years. As a child I remember my mother, grandmother and great grandmother discussing at great length how their Christmas Cakes and puddings turned out that year. It was obvious they were proud of their accomplishment and that there was a little friendly competition between the three of them - my grandmother often said you could tell a lot about a person from their Christmas Cake...hmmm ;)

My first Christmas as a newlywed I made my own Christmas Cake just so I could be part of their little group and I've baked one every year since.  I use the family recipe, but we've all baked this cake a little differently - adding our own touch with varying results.

I've been making Christmas Cakes for thirty years now and I'm definitively no expert, but my cakes are always moist and flavorsome and we enjoy them.

The recipe is at the bottom of the post but I thought I'd also share the variations between my Christmas Cake baking and my mum's so you can choose what works best for you. I like a lot of cake between my fruit, while mum prefers a darker, richer, fruiter cake. Here's how we both bake this recipe:

Fruit:

I use a combined weight of 1.5 kg of sultana's, raisins, dates and currants, and I'm pretty carefree about the individual quantities. I always start with a kilo of sultana's and then I add random weights of the other fruits until I reach the 1.5kg - less currants, more dates and raisins.

Mum omits the dates and adds mixed peel and glace cherries (both of which I don't enjoy), and she uses more fruit, around 2kg, and her cakes still work perfectly (she does add more liquor though).

You could also add cranberries, figs or prunes - make it your own.

Soaking Liquid:

You will need to soak your fruit for 24 hours in either liquor or juice. Our family has always used McWilliams Sweet Sherry with good results - I used Brandy once but the cake seemed dry and it crumbled plus the smell was unpleasant.

I soak my fruit in about 1/2 - 3/4 cup of sherry and mum uses around 1/2 a bottle - she likes a drunk fruit cake and we tease her mercifully for it ;)

If you want an alcohol-free option then try soaking the fruit in fresh orange juice or strong dark tea (I use tea for my Christmas pudding).

Cake Tin Preparation:

I use an 8" round cake tin, mum uses a larger 10" square tin. This does add a little extra cooking time to mine but that's ok.

Grease the bottom and sides of the tin well and line the base with baking paper. Take a long length of baking paper, fold it in half lengthways and then grab the two short ends to form a circle. Place it into the tin, pressing it against the greased sides to hold it in place. The short ends will cross over each other so make sure they stay nice and flat.

The paper will stand proud of the tin and that's what you need to accommodate the batter and protect the cake while it's baking.

Batter:

It's important to not over cream the butter and brown sugar because you cake will crumble when it's cut. It takes a little arm power but it's best to cream with a wooden spoon and leave the electric mixer for other recipes.

I have a huge ceramic bowl which I use specifically for my Christmas Cake and Christmas Pudding, and it's the perfect size for such a large quantity of batter.

Once you've creamed your butter and sugar, add the eggs one at a time and then mix well by hand. I add vanilla essence and marmalade and mum adds about a teaspoon of Parisian Essence because she prefers a darker cake.

I make the batter and then add the fruit because I find it easier to mix, plus I know all the batter is mixed well and there's no flour left at the bottom of the bowl, and your fruit will be nicely coated.

Oven Temperatures:

Every oven is different, and it helps if you know yours well. In my old oven I had to increase the temperature slightly because the door wouldn't seal correctly (it was either that or lean on it for three hours). In my current oven I bake my Christmas Cake at 120C (fan forced) for 1 1/2 hours and then I turn the oven down to 110C for the next 1 1/2 - 2 1/4 hours.

Mum prefers to bake at an even temperature for 3 1/2+ hours but her oven is very old and it's quite temperamental if you change the temperature mid baking. 

The best results are obtained from a long, slow cook so keep the temperature down. I start checking if my cake is cooked at around the three hour mark and then every fifteen minutes until the skewer comes out clean when inserted in the middle.

Wrapping and Storing Your Cake:

If you wrap and store your cake well it will last for months. Mum uses the baking paper she cooked her cake in, I wrap mine in a new piece. We both wrap our cakes twice in aluminium foil and store them in a large airtight container for at least five weeks.

I have read where people brush their cakes once a week with more liquor or juice, but we've never done this and our cakes are always moist. If this is something you have done before and it worked, then by all means do!

If you would like to try our family recipe for Christmas Cake, simply click on the link to download the recipe card or right click on the photo below and save to your computer:

I hope all this information helps you bake your own Christmas Cake this year. If you have any other tips or family traditions then don't be shy, share them in the comments so everyone can read them!

Happy Christmas baking :)