Chelsea’s Favourite Christmas Cake
A traditional fruit Christmas cake recipe
This makes two cakes - half the recipe if you only want one!
Ingredients
- 250g butter
- 2 cups Chelsea White Sugar
- 2kg mixed dried fruit
- 1 cup sherry
- 2 tsp mixed spice
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 4 Tbsp Chelsea Golden Syrup or Treacle
- 4 eggs
- 450g plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 Tbsp orange zest
Method
- Heat butter, sugar, fruit, sherry, spice, baking soda and syrup in a large saucepan. Heat over a medium heat for 2 minutes, stirring often. Allow to cool fully (at least 1 hour).
- Heat oven to 125°C conventional bake. Grease 2 x deep 20cm round tins (or 2 x regular 30cm tins) and triple line with baking paper, ensuring the paper extends up the sides beyond the tin.
- Beat eggs and stir through cooled fruit mixture. Sift dry ingredients and fold into fruit mixture with orange zest.
- Spoon into tins, bake for approximately 3-3½ hours or until cooked when tested with a skewer. Decorate once cool.
Handy Tips
- For alcohol-free, replace sherry with black tea, fruit juice or water!
- Place a double layer of baking paper across top of tin to prevent cake browning too quickly (avoiding contact with cake mixture).
- We have updated this recipe to make it easier to bake by spreading it across two cake tins. You can still make it as one cake, just allow for a longer cooking time (approx. 4 hrs) and check it regularly.
- The secret to success is baking on a low temperature for longer.
For more inspiration go to www.chelsea.co.nz
