Make a special Christmas cake: a holiday favourite!

Christmas cakes are an important part of the holiday season in the UK. Traditionally, they are made several weeks before Christmas and “fed” with small amounts of tea, alcohol or juice to keep them moist and full of flavour. Many families enjoy decorating the cake together with marzipan or icing, turning baking into a shared festive activity.

For many people, the rich smell of a Christmas cake baking in the oven is a sign that the holidays have truly begun. So, if you haven’t made your own yet, why not get into the holiday spirit with Monica Green’s famous Christmas cake?

Recipe

Prep 20 mins plus overnight soaking Cook 3 hrs

For the cake

● 200ml hot, strong black tea (any type)

● 3 tbsp whisky

● 3 tbsp good-quality orange marmalade (thin or medium shred)

● 700g mixed dried fruit

● 100g mixed peel

● 100g glacé cherries (natural colour)

● 225g butter

● 225g golden caster sugar

● 4 eggs, beaten

● 225g plain flour

● 1 tsp ground mixed spice

● 1 tsp ground cinnamon

● zest of 1 lemon

Soaking the cake

● 2 tbsp caster sugar

● 50m hot black tea

● 1 tbsp whisky (or use orange juice if you prefer)

Soaking in whisky, tea, and marmalade makes for the juiciest, fruity and rich, but not overpowering, cake. If you use orange juice instead of whisky, the result will still be good.

Method:

1. Mix the hot tea, whisky and marmalade in a large bowl until the marmalade melts. Stir in all of the dried fruit, peel and cherries, then cover and leave to soak overnight.

2. Next day, heat the oven to 160ºC/fan and grease and double-line a 20cm round, deep cake tin with non-stick baking paper.

3. Using an electric beater, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs a little at a time, beating well after each addition, then fold in the flour and spices, followed by the lemon zest and soaked fruit. Add any liquid that hasn’t been absorbed by the fruit too.

4. Spoon into the prepared tin, level the top, then bake for 1½ hrs. Turn the oven down to 140ºC and bake for another 1½ hrs or until a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack in the tin.

5. While the cake is still warm, use a skewer to poke the cake with holes, poking it all the way down. Dissolve the sugar in the tea, add the whisky or orange juice, then spoon over the surface.

Can be kept for a month well-wrapped in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.