Mmmmmm…..fruit cake!
Now call me old fashioned but I really think that fruit cake still has a place at the modern wedding. The spicy, moist, brandy soaked fruit snuggled next to delicious fat cherries should not simply be cast aside because the youth of today prefer a contemporary chocolate number. Even if you don’t like to eat it, I am a firm believer in the fact that keeping the top tier of your wedding cake is a tradition that should live on. Furthermore, the role of the humble fruit cake should not be confined to keeping Grandma Joan happy on your big day either, it really does taste delicious if it’s made right!
In a bid to promote the virtues of the humble fruit cake, I am willing to share my secret recipe (not something I undertake lightly). Serious non-believers have been converted having sampled this recipe so give it a go and be amazed by what you find!
Cakes by Robin’s delicious fruit cake
This is a fruit cake with a difference. It is jam packed with plump brandy soaked vine fruits and cherries. The glace ginger and walnuts replace the usual mixed peel and almonds and even if I say so myself, it is seriously yummy! It is also cooked for less time than some fruit cakes making it more moist and sticky
450g currants
175g sultanas
175g raisins
100g natural coloured glace cherries
100g chopped glace ginger
Soak the five ingredients above in 4 generous tablespoons of brandy for at least 12 hours or leaving them overnight is even better.
250g plain flour
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground mixed spice
100g chopped walnuts
250g muscovado sugar
1 tablespoon black treacle
250g soft butter
4 medium eggs
Grated rind of 1 orange
Grated rind of 1 lemon
Tip: The real key to making your cakes turn out perfectly every time is to make sure that your tin is lined with greaseproof paper-a ring on the bottom of the tin and one around the sides will ensure that you don’t leave half the cake stuck to the bottom when you turn it out.
This recipe will make one round 8 inch cake.
Preferably with a mixer but by hand if you don’t have one, cream the butter and sugar together until it is light and fluffy and has changed to a lighter colour. It will take about 10 mins in a mixer or a bit longer by hand. This is really important as it keeps the cake light. Add the beaten eggs a bit at a time mixing after each addition. If the mixture starts to curdle, add a little of the flour. Mix in the treacle to the butter mixture.
Sieve together the flour and spices . Sometimes I don’t bother to sieve and it turns out fine. Add this to the butter and egg mixture along with the grated citrus zest and mix thoroughly.
Now stir in the soaked fruit and walnuts into the cake mix and spoon into the lined tin.
Cook cake on 140C for 2.5 hours. Check to see that the top isn’t getting too brown. Test to see whether the cake is cooked by putting a skewer into the middle of the cake. If it comes out cleanly with no cake mix, the cake is done. Cool on a wire rack. Cover in marzipan and icing and then decorate as creatively as you want.
Remember people eat with their eyes first so even the most hardened fruit cake hater can’t help but like this recipe if it’s decorated beautifully!
We would love to design a wedding cake for you whether I have managed to convince you of the virtues of a fruit cake tier or not! Have a look at our cake flavours and fillings page and see what else takes your fancy
