How-To: Christmas Cake

Serves 16

375g sultanas

150g raisins, chopped

150g currants

125g dried figs, finely chopped

125g pitted prunes, finely chopped

100g dried cranberries

100g dried pineapple, finely chopped

100g dried dates, chopped

100g mixed peel

½ cup slivered almonds

1 tbsp orange rind, finely grated

½ cup caster sugar

½ cup orange juice

½ cup dark rum

200g butter, softened

½ cup brown sugar

4 eggs

1½ cups plain flour

2 tsp mixed spice

¼ cup apricot jam, melted, strained

pure icing sugar, sifted

750g ready-made fondant icing

glace clementines, to decorate, optional 

1 Combine dried fruits, mixed peel, almonds and orange rind in a large bowl. Place caster sugar in a frying pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until sugar caramelises. Remove  from heat. Carefully add orange juice. Return to low heat.  Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until mixture is smooth. Pour over fruit mixture with half the rum, stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap  and set aside overnight to soak.

2 Preheat oven to 150°C.  Grease a 20cm cake tin with butter. Line the base and side with 3 layers of baking paper. Use an electric mixer to beat the butter and brown sugar until pale and creamy.

3 Add eggs, one at a time, until combined. Add to the fruit mixture and stir to combine. Add flour and mixed spice, stir until well combined.

4 Spoon into the prepared tin and smooth the surface. Tap pan firmly on the bench to settle the mixture.  Bake in preheated oven for 3 hours or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.

5 Remove from oven and brush hot cake with remaining rum. Cover with foil.  Turn cake upside-down onto a flat clean work surface. Set aside overnight to cool completely.

6 Place cake on a serving plate. Use a little fondant to fill in any holes in the cake. Brush the  top and side of cake with half the jam.

7 Dust a clean work surface with icing sugar. Knead fondant until smooth. Roll half the fondant out to a 7mm-thick disc, large enough to cover top and side of cake.

8 Lift fondant onto cake with a rolling pin. Smooth fondant over cake with hands dusted with icing sugar. Use a small sharp knife to trim the edge of excess fondant. Repeat with remaining jam

and fondant to cover cake with a second layer.

9 Decorate with glace clementines and ribbon.

Click on the pictures below for a step-by-step guide to creating this Christmas cake: