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Nutrition: per slice

  • kcal427
  • fat22g
  • saturates8g
  • carbs53g
  • sugars17g
  • fibre2g
  • protein7g
  • salt0.42g
    low
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Method

  • step 1

    Heat oven to 160C/fan 140C/gas 3. Line the base and sides of a 20 cm round, 7.5 cm deep cake tin. Beat the butter and sugar with an electric hand mixer for 1-2 mins until very creamy and pale in colour, scraping down the sides of the bowl half way through. Stir in a spoonful of the flour, then stir in the beaten egg and the rest of the flour alternately, a quarter at a time, beating well each time with a wooden spoon. Stir in the almonds.

  • step 2

    Mix in the sherry (the mix will look curdled), then add the peel, cherries, raisins, cherries, nuts, lemon zest, spice, rosewater and vanilla. Beat together to mix, then stir in the baking powder.

  • step 3

    Spoon mixture into the tin and smooth the top, making a slight dip in the centre. Bake for 30 mins, then lower temperature to 150C/fan 130C/gas 2 and bake a further 2-2¼ hrs, until a skewer insterted in the middle comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin, then take out of the tin and peel off the lining paper. When completely cold, wrap well in cling film and foil to store until ready to decorate. The cake will keep for several months.

Recipe from Good Food magazine, November 2004

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Comments, questions and tips (60)

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Overall rating

A star rating of 4.9 out of 5.36 ratings

debcas

I made this cake for the first time this year and it’s delicious. The rose water comes through quite strongly, so not one for people who dislike rose water, but it’s what makes the cake so distinctive.

Mamabearbyrne

Nicest fruit cake I’ve ever made! Swapped pecans for walnuts. I’m going to soak the fruit in the sherry to see if that enhances further. I’m about to make my third one since Christmas lol, what a fantastic all year round cake.

nikkifazackerleyTquEQhyv

question

If I left out rosewater would that make a big difference to the taste?

CassieBestGF

Hello, Cassie from the cookery team here. Rose water has quite a strong taste but it's completely optional, so you could leave it out but you will miss out on the lovely floral quality it brings.

lesleycannonuk

I love the sound of this recipe but not the nuts! What could I add instead? Or would it turn out ok without them? Thanks

Lovemyhouse

I've made this without the nuts and the ground almonds before and it was perfectly fine :)

Lauralovescake

question

If i scale this up to by 50% to make a 10 inch cake, what is the cooking time?

goodfoodteam avatar
goodfoodteam

Thanks for your question. Unfortunately we can't give exact timings or quantities for scaling up our cakes without retesting. We suggest keeping an eye on it from around 2 1/2 hours and testing with a skewer once it starts to look done.

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