Irish whiskey christmas cake pt 1

1 servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
10 fluid ounce Irish whiskey
1½ teaspoon Angostura bitters
1 pounds Raisins
8 ounces Currants
4 ounces Stoned no-soak prunes
2 ounces Glace cherries
2 ounces Unblanched almonds
4 ounces Mixed candied peel
½ Rounded tsp ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon Freshly grated nutmeg
½ teaspoon Ground cloves
1½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
1 tablespoon Molasses sugar
Grated zest of 1 orange
Grated zest of 1 lemon
½ teaspoon Salt
9 ounces Self-raising flour; sifted
9 ounces Demerara sugar
9 ounces Unsalted butter; softened
5 larges Eggs at room temperature
1 Heaped tbsp apricot jam
1 tablespoon Irish whiskey
1 Pound; ¥
2 ounces Marzipan; (in a block)
1 Pound; ¥
4 ounces Unrefined golden icing
Sugar; plus a little extra
; for rolling
1 large Egg white
1 Dtsp molasses syrup or black treacle
2½ tablespoon Irish whiskey

Directions

FOR THE PRE-SOAKING

FOR THE CAKE

FOR THE ICING

1 One week before you intend to bake the cake, measure out the whiskey, bitters and 3 tbsp of water into a large saucepan, then roughly chop the prunes, cherries and almonds and finely dice the mixed candied peel. Add these, along with the rest of the pre-soaking ingredients, to the pan, ticking them as you go to make sure nothing gets left out. Now stir and bring the mixture up to simmering point then, keeping the heat low, simmer very gently without a lid for 15 minutes.

2 Allow everything to cool completely then pour into a large jar with a lid or an airtight plastic container and leave it in the fridge for seven days, giving it a shake from time to time.

3 When you're ready to bake the cake, preheat the oven to 275f/140c/Gas 1.

If you are using a gas oven that was made after 1992 you will need to cook this cake at Gas 2. Measure out the flour, sugar and butter into a very large bowl then add the eggs and either whisk or beat with a wooden spoon until blended.

4 Gradually fold in the fruit mixture until evenly distributed. Spoon the mixture into the tin, levelling the surface with the back of a spoon.

5 Bake in the centre of the oven for 3 hours without opening the door, then cover the cake with a double thickness of greaseproof paper and continue to bake for a further 30 mins or until the centre is springy when lightly touched.

6 Cool the cake for 45 mins in the tin, then remove it to a wire rack to finish cooling. When it's cold, wrap it in a double layer of greaseproof paper, then foil, and store in airtight container.

7 When you are ready to finish the cake, first take a sharp knife and cut the cake into quarters so you end up with four smaller 4"/10cm square cakes. Melt the jam with the whiskey in a small saucepan and stir it a few times until all the lumps have dissolved.

8 Using a brush, coat the surface of each cake quite generously with it.

Take the marzipan and cut off a quarter of the block, then, on a surface lightly dusted with icing sugar, roll the piece into an 8"/20cm square.

9 With a sharp knife, cut the square into quarters so you have four 4"/10cm square pieces. Gently take each square and place one on top of each cake, lightly pressing the marzipan down.

10 Cut the remaining piece of marzipan in half and roll each half into a strip measuring 6 x 16" (15 x 40cm), then cut each strip in half lengthways so you are left with four strips, one for the sides of each cake. Press each strip lightly around the edges of each cake and pinch to seal at the join with the top piece of marzipan.

11 For the icing: Sieve the icing sugar, then place the egg white and molasses (or black treacle) in a large bowl and, using an electric hand whisk, whisk thoroughly.

12 With the whisk running, add a tbsp of icing sugar at a time and keep adding until thickened. As it begins to crumble, add a tbsp of Irish whiskey to combine the mixture, then carry on adding more icing sugar until it becomes thick. Add another tablespoon of whiskey, then the rest continued in part 2

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