Name: Suits-all Christmas cake
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 3 h 20 min
Total time: 3 h 50 min
Yield: Makes 1 x 20cm or 22cm round or square cake (each cuts into 20 pieces)
Cuisine: British
Ingredients: zest 1 orange or 2 clementines plus 100m juice; zest 2 lemons plus 100ml juice; 1 tbsp orange blossom water; 1 tsp rosewater; 3 tbsp clear honey; 200g glacé cherries; 200g mixed peel; 200g dried apricots diced; 175g golden sultanas; 140g dried cranberries or sour cherries, or a mix; 100g dried mango diced; 280g butter at room temperature, plus extra for greasing; 140g golden caster sugar; 140g light muscovado sugar; 4 large eggs beaten; 250g plain flour; 100g ground almonds; 2 tsp ground cinnamon; 1 tsp orange blossom water; 50ml orange juice

zest 1 orange or 2 clementines
plus 100m juice
zest 2 lemons
plus 100ml juice
1 tbsp orange blossom water
1 tsp rosewater
3 tbsp clear honey
200g glacé cherries
200g mixed peel
200g dried apricots
diced
175g golden sultanas
140g dried cranberries
or sour cherries, or a mix
100g dried mango
diced
280g butter
at room temperature, plus extra for greasing
140g golden caster sugar
140g light muscovado sugar
4 large eggs
beaten
250g plain flour
100g ground almonds
2 tsp ground cinnamon

To feed the cake

1 tsp orange blossom water
50ml orange juice

Method

step 1
Mix together the orange and lemon zests and juice, the orange blossom water, rosewater and honey in a large bowl. Stir in all of the dried fruit, cover and leave overnight to soak.
step 2
The next day, heat oven to 160C/140C fan/ gas 3. Grease and double-line a 22cm round or square cake tin (for a flatter cake) or a 20cm round or square tin (for a deeper cake) with baking parchment. In another big bowl, beat the butter and sugars together with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one by one, then fold in the flour, almonds and cinnamon.
step 3
Tip in the soaked fruits and any juices left in the bowl, and stir in. Spoon the mix into the prepared tin and level the top. If you want your cake flat rather than slightly rounded, make a gradual dip in the centre of the mix with the back of a wooden spoon. Bake for 1 hr 30 mins, then turn the oven down to 140C/120C fan/gas 1 and bake for another 1 hr 30 mins for 22cm cakes, or 1 hr 50 mins for 20cm cakes, until a skewer poked into the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tin, sitting on a wire rack.
step 4
While the cake is still warm, mix together the feeding ingredients, pepper the cake with holes using a thin skewer and spoon over the liquid. If you’re making the cake ahead of time, feed once a week for up to 4 weeks. Keep well wrapped in parchment, inside an airtight container, for up to 1 month. If you’re not getting ahead, this cake tastes just as delicious a day or two after baking.