Nan's Christmas Cake

Christmas in my Dad’s family means three things: Wonderful Christmastime by Paul McCartney playing on repeat; near-constant cups of tea; and looking forward to a Christmas cake made by my Nan. To most, my Nan’s Christmas cake is just a fruitcake made with soaked, dried fruits, marzipan, flour and so on, but what it really is, is a family tradition that means so much to me. 

My Nan grew up in post-Second World War Britain. At the time, food was rationed via coupon books. Foods such as eggs, sugar, and milk were scarce. Dried fruits and nuts were equally as difficult to obtain and so a cake such as this, which uses all of these ingredients, was only made on special occasions, most often Christmas. No matter how difficult it was to source the ingredients, my Nan’s family could always rely on having one on the dinner table each Christmas. 
During the 70 years since rationing ended in Britain, a lot has changed. My Dad's family immigrated to Canada, had their next generation of kids, and went through losses and rough times, however, one thing has remained the same — my Nan's Christmas cake. 

Christmas cake is one of the few recipes in our family that hadn't been passed down to me until recently. When writing this recipe, I decided that there was no better way to understand and share it than to make it with the creator, my Nan. She and I have always been connected in the kitchen. From making my first Victoria Sponge with her, to learning how to make scones and other family recipes, we always seem to end up in the kitchen one way or another when I visit. Learning how to make this Christmas cake feels special. A recipe that has made it through our family’s history, through rationing in Britain and moving overseas to Canada, a recipe that no matter how hard or costly it is to make is always guaranteed to be a beloved Christmas tradition — and maybe now my Nan and I have started a new one by making it together. ​

Recipe 

Involved Time: 5 Hours
Passive Time: 19 Days
Serves: 12
Complexity: 4/5
Notes: The recipe instructions are organized as a timeline as the making the cake is a nearly 20 day process. Follow the instructions precisely and do not skip steps or ingredients, it will affect the quality of the cake. Mise en place and checking off ingredients as you add them strongly advised. 
Ingredients 

CAKE
8 OZ            Currants
3 OZ            Sultanas
3 OZ            Raisins
1 ½ OZ       Glace Cherries rinsed and finely chopped
2 OZ            Mixed lemon and orange rind finely chopped
3 TBSP       Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice 
4 OZ            Flour
4 OZ            Soft Brown Sugar
4 OZ            Unsalted Butter (softened) 
1 ½ OZ       Ground Almonds
1 TBSP        Warmed Lyle’s Golden Syrup 
2                   Eggs
Pinch          Salt

MARZIPAN
1 LB 8 OZ    Store bought marzipan
3 TBSP        Apricot jam (warmed with solids strained) 
Extra icing sugar to coat worksurface

ICING 
1 ½ LB         Icing Sugar
3                     Egg Whites
3 TSP            Lemon Juice
1 ½ TSP      Glycerine
Extra egg white to thin icing if needed

for the baking tin
1x     6” spring form tin
1x     6” wide circle of parchment paper for bottom
1x     4” x 20” piece of parchment paper to line sides
1x     20” piece of oven safe kitchen twine 
2x     6” wide circles of parchment paper with a toonie sized hole cut in centre for top
2x     2” x 15” pieces of brown paper - from a paper bag
DAY 1 - FRUIT SOAKING
  1. Add currants, sultanas, raisins, glace cherries, half of the rinds, along with orange juice to a large bowl, soak fruits in orange juice for 12 hours covered with a clean tea towel. (Slideshow Photo 1)
    DAY 2 - CAKE BAKING
  1. Cut out all pieces of parchment, brown paper, and string, line tin with bottom and side pieces, wrap pieces of brown paper around the exterior of the tin and tie with twine. 
  2. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees fahrenheit.
  3. Measure and sieve flour and salt into a bowl. (Slideshow Photo 2)
  4. In a separate bowl, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy (Slideshow Photo 3). 
  5. In a small bowl beat eggs. 
  6. Add eggs and flour 1 TBSP at a time to the butter and sugar mixture (don't add all your eggs at once, they will curdle). Beat until consistent batter is formed (Slideshow Photo 4&5). 
  7. Into the batter, fold in the soaked fruit, remaining orange and lemon peel, ground almonds, and warmed Lyle’s Golden Syrup. Be sure to fully incorporate -- the fruit is heavier than the batter and will sink to the bottom if not properly mixed. (Slideshow Photo 6& 7)
  8. Once all ingredients are folded into the batter, pour the mixture into the lined tin and spread with the back of a spoon, the mixture should be pushed slightly to the sides to ensure even cooking.(Slideshow Photo 9)
  9. Take remain parchment paper circles (with centre holes) and place directly on top of the batter stacked one on top of the other (we use so much paper for the cake to avoid direct contact with oven heat, the high sugar content of this cake makes it susceptible to burning beyond the point of return so we aim to mitigate that by using these techniques). (Slideshow Photo 8)
  10. Bake cake on lowest shelf for 2h45m, DO NOT OPEN DOOR WHILE BAKING
  11. At the 2h45m mark, remove cake from the oven and listen for a sizzling noise, if the noise is very loud, it's not cooked, continue adding cooking time in 5 minute increments. If it's completely silent it is likely overcooked, remove it immediately to save it. If there is a faint sizzling noise, it is perfectly cooked and can be removed and left to rest on the counter over a cooling rack. Remove tin paper and leave to cool. (Slideshow Photo 10) 
  12. When the cake is cold, wrap it tightly in greaseproof paper and aluminium foil, store in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 weeks.
DAY 15 - MARZIPAN COVERING 
  1. On a counter, using plenty of powdered sugar, roll out marzipan ⅛” thick and 2.5” wider than the cake all around.
  2. Once marzipan is rolled out, heat up your apricot jam (microwave will do). With a kitchen brush, paint the hot jam on one side of the marzipan, this is to ensure it sticks to the cake (we use apricot jam as in small quantities its flavour remains neutral whereas other types of jam would overpower the cake). 
  3. Lay marzipan jam-side-down onto the cake, ensuring it sticks to the top and sides of the cake. (any excess can be removed with a sharp kitchen knife) 
  4. Cover loosely with baking parchment and allow to dry for three days. 
    DAY 18 - ICING MAKING
  1. Sieve the icing sugar.
  2. Whisk the egg whites in a large bowl until they become frothy.
  3. Add the icing sugar to the egg whites, a spoonful at a time, and fold in.
  4. Add the lemon juice and glycerine and stir.
  5. Beat the icing with an electric mixer until it forms stiff, white peaks.
  6. Spread over the top and sides of the cake and rough up the icing with a spatula so that it forms a snow peak look. 
  7. Leave cake loosely covered overnight until icing is dried ​
​DAY 19 - SERVE

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Nearly 20 days later, the cake is finally finished and you can now savour the (dried) fruits of your labour. The icing provides the cake with a crispy hard exterior, but underneath you will be greeted by a fragrant, dense, citrusy cake, coated in a delicate marzipan layer. This cake is best enjoyed with a cup of tea, watching the Boxing Day Premier League match . 



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Thank you to my Nan for teaching me so much of what I know in the kitchen today. When it comes to Nans, I couldn't have asked for a funnier, more loving, or more creative one. Love you Nan.