Name: Sherry & almond Christmas cake
Cook time: 3 h
Total time: 3 h 30 min
Yield: Cuts into 12 slices
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: 1kg bag mixed dried fruit (not one with cherries); zest and juice 2 large oranges; 150ml PX (Pedro Ximenez) sherry plus extra for feeding; 250g pack butter softened, plus extra for the tin; 250g light muscovado sugar; seeds scraped from 1 vanilla pod; 140g plain flour; 100g ground almond; 2 tsp mixed spice; 4 large eggs beaten; 140g whole almond

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Sherry & almond Christmas cake

Sherry & almond Christmas cake

Jane Hornby

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Cuts into 12 slices

Easy

Cook: 3 hrs

Prep 30 mins plus overnight soaking

A star rating of 4.7 out of 5.20 ratingsRate

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Packed with
almonds, both ground and whole, and fed with raisiny PX sherry, this is
intensely fruity - but not overly rich

Freezable

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Alternatives

Complete the dish

Showing items 1 to 3 of 3

Decorative stars

A star rating of 4.3 out of 5.4 ratings

Easy marzipan

A star rating of 4.6 out of 5.37 ratings

Ingredients

Nutrition

Units:

MetricUS

1kg bag mixed dried fruit

(not one with cherries)
zest and juice 2 large oranges
150ml PX (Pedro Ximenez) sherry

plus extra for feeding
250g pack butter

softened, plus extra for the tin
250g light muscovado sugar
seeds scraped from 1 vanilla pod
140g plain flour
100g ground almond
2 tsp mixed spice
4 large eggs

beaten
140g whole almond

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Nutrition: per serving with icing and marzipan

kcal1079
fat54g
saturates15g
carbs137g
sugars126g
fibre0g
protein19g
salt0.6g

low

Method

step 1

Mix the fruit, zest, juice and sherry, and leave overnight to soak. Next day, heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. Butter and double-line a deep, 20cm round cake tin. Wrap the outside with brown paper or newspaper and secure with string, as this will protect the sides from overcooking.
step 2

Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla seeds together until pale and creamy. Mix the flour, ground almonds and mixed spice together, then tip into the butter mix with the eggs. Beat until combined and smooth. Stir in the whole almonds, fruit and any leftover juices, turn into the tin, then smooth the top and make a dip in the middle. Bake for 1½ hrs.
step 3

Turn down the oven to 140C/fan 130C/ gas 2, then bake for 1½ hrs more until dark on the top and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean, or with a few damp crumbs clinging to it. Once cool enough to handle, turn onto a cooling rack and peel away the lining paper. Cool completely.
step 4

Keep the cake well wrapped, then feed once a fortnight with 1-2 tbsp sherry. Poke holes into the cake with a skewer and slowly spoon over the sherry. If you don’t have time to do this, this cake is delicious freshly made, and can be covered and decorated as soon as it has completely cooled down.

Recipe from Good Food magazine, November 2008

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A star rating of 4.7 out of 5.20 ratings

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