This recipe is one I do every year at this time, whilst it’s not officially a Christmas cake, it is well suited as one.
We first made this cake when I was working in Ireland and we loved the fact that it was packed full of fruit but wasn’t heavy like the traditional Xmas cakes.
Make this cake as on the morning of Xmas and serve warm with some cream, ice-cream and poached strawberries. Stop it!
Dundee cake
Makes one 25 cm cake
- 450 gm butter softened
- 1 lemon, zested
- 1 orange zested
- 175 gm castor sugar
- 100 gm stevia natural sweetener
- 300 gm raisins
- 150 gm currants
- 150 gm sultanas
- 150 gm mixed candied peel
- 500 gm plain flour
- 75 gm baking powder
- 100 gm ground almonds
- 8 eggs
20 whole almonds for decoration
25 ml milk
Cream butter and gradually work in the fresh citrus rind.
Add the sugar and cream together until pale, light and fluffy.
Place raisins, currants, sultanas and mixed peel in a bowl.
Sift flour and salt together twice and add 50g of it to the mixed fruit. Mix well to cover all.
Add the ground almonds to the butter and sugar and mix well, then gradually add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Gradually fold in half the remaining flour, then the fruit little by little. Fold in the rest of the flour. (At this point add the alcohol if using it)
Spoon the mixture into greased and lined 25 cm cake tin and smooth the surface. Dip the whole almonds into milk then arrange on top)
Bake at 170 C for at least 30 minutes then continue cooking until done. Check regularly.