Makes 20cm square cake
125g unsalted butter, at room temperature
⅓ cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs, whisked
¼ cup golden syrup
250g pitted dates (left whole)
200g glacé cherries (left whole)
125g glacé pineapple, cut into 2cm pieces
125g glacé apricots, cut into 2cm pieces
125g glacé figs, cut into 2cm pieces
125g whole macadamia nuts
125g whole brazil nuts
125g whole roasted hazelnuts
¼ cup self-raising flour
¼ cup plain flour
⅓ cup brandy
additional glacé fruit, to serve
1 Preheat oven to 150C. Grease and line a 20cm square cake tin with baking paper. Using an electric beater, beat butter and sugar in a small mixing bowl until light and creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add syrup and beat until combined.
2 Transfer mixture to a large bowl. Add prepared fruit and nuts. Stir with a large metal spoon. Fold in sifted flours. Add ¼ cup of brandy and stir until combined.
3 Spoon mixture into prepared tin. Smooth top of cake with the back of a wet spoon. Bake for 1¼ hours or until cooked through when tested with a skewer in the centre of the cake. Remove from oven and pour over remaining brandy. Wrap in a thick towel and stand to cool. When cold, remove cake from pan and place into an airtight container and store in the fridge. Serve with extra glacé fruit on top.
