Recipes

We serve this cake as an alternative to traditional Christmas cake. It is loaded with sherry-soaked fruits, walnuts and cranberries.





Makes 10–12 slices

    60 g unsalted butter, at room temperature
    50 g light brown soft sugar
    1 tablespoon molasses (or black treacle)
    2 small eggs, beaten
    60 g plain flour
    11⁄2 teaspoons baking powder
    1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    freshly grated zest of 1 unwaxed orange
    50 g fresh or frozen cranberries
    20 g shelled walnuts, chopped
    Sherry-soaked fruits
    100 g raisins
    130 g sultanas
    60 g mixed peel
    3 tablespoons sherry (dry, if possible)
    40 ml apple juice
    Topping
    100 g apricot jam
    100 g fresh or frozen cranberries
    80 g walnut halves
    a 20-cm non-stick springform tin

Method

Prepare the sherry-soaked fruits at least 24 hours in advance. Put the raisins, sultanas, mixed peel, sherry and apple juice in a bowl. Mix, cover and leave to rest for at least 24 hours.

When you are ready to make the cake, preheat the oven to 180C (350F) Gas 4.

Put the butter, sugar and molasses in a mixing bowl and mix well. Fold in the eggs, then add the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, orange zest, cranberries and walnuts. Finally, fold in about 190 g of the soaked fruit, setting the rest aside for the topping. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking tin and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes, or until deep golden and springy to the touch. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin.

To make the topping, put the apricot jam in a saucepan and gently bring to the boil over low heat, stirring frequently. Add the cranberries and cook for a few minutes, until their skins just begin to crack. Remove from the heat and stir in the walnuts and the remaining sherry soaked fruits. Mix well and spoon on top of the cake. Cover the cake evenly and press very slightly to fix it in place. Leave to rest for a few hours before serving.

Taken from Popina Book of Baking by Isidora  Popovic (Ryland Peters & Small), with a foreword by our very own Henrietta Green. Photography by Peter Cassidy, copyright of Ryland Peters & Small.