Christmas Cake 2024 - At Home With Helen

As I had the children for the day, I thought I'd take the opportunity to make this year's Christmas Cake with them. All good fun! Recipe: 300g natural-colour glacé cherries, washed and halved 240g sultanas 360g raisins 360g currants 100g mixed peel 40g glace ginger (or finely chopped stem ginger) 200g salted butter 200g molasses sugar 200g plain flour 4 eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg Pinch of ground cloves 1/2 teaspoon mixed spice 160ml brandy, plus more to feed (about 6–10 tablespoons, to taste) 70ml vodka Method: Preheat the oven to 140C. Or for slow cooker, one hour on high, six hours on low. Grease, base and side line an 8” round solid base cake tin (min 3” depth) Place the dried fruit, peel and glace ginger into a large bowl big enough to hold the entire mix and mix together with a large wooden spoon. Place the butter and sugar in a small, microwave-safe bowl and heat for 1 minute at a time, stirring with a whisk at each interval, to mix the butter and sugar together. If you don’t have a microwave, do this in a non-stick pan over a low heat and melt gently. Beat the eggs together with the vanilla extract. Add the spices to your flour and mix well with a metal spoon or whisk to disperse. Add the spiced flour to the fruit and toss over with your hands to mix through. Tip the warm butter and sugar mix into the large bowl of fruit and mix well. Add the beaten egg and mix well. Finally add your brandy and vodka. Place in the oven and bake for 1 hour, then turn the heat down to 125°C and continue to bake until completely cooked through. This will take approximately 2–2 ½ hours, depending on your oven. Check that a sharp knife or a skewer comes out almost clean. Whist still hot, spike all over the cake with a skewer to make holes and pour over more brandy to soak the cake. Once cooled, double wrap in parchment and then wrap in strong foil. You can eat this after a week but ideally make a few weeks before you need it, and you can store it in a cool dry place for up to a year, feeding with extra brandy if you wish on occasion. ************************ Canvas Bag: https://shop.helenmaryjo.com/products... *********************** Instagram: helenmaryjohello Website: helenmaryjo.com Cameo: https://v.cameo.com/e/wkPdCAzr2Hb Jewellery: ** https://www.mounir.co.uk/collections/... HMJ10 gives you 10% discount ** affiliate link