Festive Fruit and Nut Cake

Name: Festive Fruit and Nut Cake
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 2 h 40 min
Yield: Cuts into 12-16 slices
Cuisine: british
Ingredients: 250g butter at room temperature; 140g light muscovado sugar; 6 large eggs beaten; 280g plain flour; 85g ground almond; 2 tsp ground ginger; 2 tsp ground cinnamon; 700g luxury mixed fruit (including raisins, currants, sultanas, mixed peel and glace cherries); 3 tbsp dark rum; 140g white marzipan diced; 50g each whole skinned hazelnut and blanched almonds; 85g each Brazil nuts and flaked almonds; 140g whole glacé cherries; 100g golden syrup; 1 metre of wide ribbon

4.70 (29)

⏱ 160 mins 🍽 Cuts into 12-16 slices 🌶 british ✅ Easy 🏷 Dessert

This rich and moist British Christmas dessert features a spiced fruit cake base, soaked with dark rum and studded with marzipan. It is uniquely finished with a golden, syrupy topping of whole nuts and glacé cherries, reminiscent of a Florentine biscuit. Once baked and cooled, it is wrapped and tied with a wide ribbon for a festive presentation. Perfect for the holiday season, it yields 12 to 16 slices.

Ingredients

250g butter at room temperature
140g light muscovado sugar
6 large eggs beaten
280g plain flour
85g ground almond
2 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp ground cinnamon
700g luxury mixed fruit (including raisins, currants, sultanas, mixed peel and glace cherries)
3 tbsp dark rum
140g white marzipan diced
50g each whole skinned hazelnut and blanched almonds
85g each Brazil nuts and flaked almonds
140g whole glacé cherries
100g golden syrup
1 metre of wide ribbon

Method

Lightly grease and line a deep 22-23cm round loose-based cake tin. Set your oven to 180C/gas 4/fan 160C. Using an electric beater, thoroughly combine the butter, sugar, eggs, flour, ground almonds and spices until creamy.
Reserve 100g/4oz of the cake mixture in a separate bowl. Gently fold the luxury mixed fruit and dark rum into the main mixture, then stir in the diced marzipan. Transfer this to the prepared tin, smooth the surface, and create a slight dip in the centre. Bake for 11⁄4 hours.
Prepare the topping while the cake bakes. Combine all the nuts, whole glacé cherries and golden syrup with the reserved cake mixture. After the initial 11⁄4 hours, spoon this nut mixture evenly over the part-cooked cake. Loosely cover the tin with foil.
Bake for a further 40 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking for 10-15 minutes until the nuts are golden. Check the cake is done by inserting a skewer. it should come out clean. Cool in the tin, then wrap it, still in its lining, with foil. It keeps for up to 2 weeks or can be frozen for up to 2 months.
For serving, unwrap the cake and remove all the lining paper. Place it on a board or plate and tie it with a 1 metre length of wide decorative ribbon.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories780 kcal

Fat40 g

Saturates14 g

Carbs95 g

Sugars28 g

Fibre4 g

Protein14 g

Sodium268 mg

Recipe details

Skill levelEasy

CategoryDessert

Cuisinebritish