The very Suzi Boozy Christmas Cake

Even in all its simplicity , a well made Christmas cake needs a little bit of preparation to start with but in the end , when one devours the results in its taste , it is absolutely humane to love every bit of the goodness that has been poured into it . This cake is more of a spiced cake ,made sweet from the flavor of rum , cinnamon and the soaked fruits - making it more dense in texture and fruity in bite . Besides , December being the wonderful month of celebration that it is, it deserves a well made cake to add more of love and heartwarming moods to everything about the season . I usually make my Christmas cake in three phases , all of which I have listed here to make it an easy step by step guide for you :

1. Soaking the fruit

Soaking of Fruits for this cake is usually done 45 days in advance - but just incase you have missed the deadline this year , do not fret much . As a quick fix , you can toss all the fruit into a microwave proof bowl along with the rum and/or brandy and stand them for 1 hour to soak up the liquid. This is just as effective and brings the same flavor onto the cake. Alternatively if you are following the 45 days format , soak all of the below in a sterilized glass jar and wait for the bake week to arrive.

Things you will need for the fruit Soak

• 300 gms mix of normal raisins and black sultanas

• 50 gms of figs , roughly chopped

• 50 gms of red glace cherries - chopped into halves

• 50 gms of cashew nuts , roughly chopped

• 50 gms of almonds , roughly chopped

• 50 gms of candied peel

• 01 tbsp of finely chopped candied ginger

• 01 tbsp. of orange peel

• 01 cup of rum OR 1/3 brandy + 2/3 rum

2. Baking the Cake

I recommend you bake the cake 02 - 03 days prior to Christmas day .

Things you will need :

• 200 gms of softened butter , at room temperature

• 1/3 cup of vegetable oil

• 01 cup powdered brown sugar

• 1/3 tbsp. of dark wild honey or maple syrup

• 04 large eggs

• 1 1/2 cups plain flour - sifted together with 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 1/2 cup almonds , finely powdered

• Juice of 01 whole orange

• 3/4 cup walnuts , chopped (optional)

• 01 tsp all - spice ( Made from a handful of lightly roasted cloves , dash of nutmeg , cardamom and 1 cinnamon stick )

• 1/2 tsp salt

Steps to follow :

• Preheat oven to 160°C and grease line 9" loaf tin or a cake pan with baking paper.

• Using an electric beater , beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until smooth .

• Next , add in the vegetable oil and the honey / maple syrup and combined - followed by the salt and the all spice mix.

• Next , add in the eggs , one at a time and beat well .

• Next , stir in the pre - sifted flour + baking powder mix along with the almond powder and chopped walnuts ( if using)

• When most of the batter is well incorporated , stir in the pre- soaked fruit mix , including 1/2 cup of the extra soaking liquid + the orange juice. Give everything a good mix .

• Now , pour the batter into the cake pan and bake it for 2 hours 3o minutes .

• Do a skewer check : Insert a skewer into middle of the cake which if done , should come out clean and with no batter on it. Remove this from the oven and cool it for 20 minutes on the cooling rack.

3. Feed - Wrap and Serve

• Place the cake on a wooden rack and prick random holes on it's surface with a skewer .

• In a cup , mix 01 tsp. of Rum with the remains of the balance fruit soak liquid .

• Give the cake a good feed of this liquid with a brush . Next , wrap the cake with butter paper and cling film and store . Repeat this feed everyday up to Christmas day.

• Cover the cake with a layer of Fondant / Marzipan or simply serve plain on Christmas Day :)

Storage – This cake stays well in the fridge and gets tastier by the day in an airtight container . Also , since this a very dense cake , you can cut it into medium pieces and easily serve up to 15- 20 people.