Nigella Lawson's Christmas cake recipe in the thermomix (2024)

FAQs

What is hidden in Christmas cake? ›

A coin was hidden inside a small cake, whoever found it was crowned as mock king. Hiding small tokens in a cake is another tradition that has existed throughout the ages. The Christmas Sixpence, which is hidden inside a Christmas pudding or cake as a token of good fortune, being a recent example of this tradition.

The cake also freezes well. Wrap the cake tightly in a double layer of clingfilm (plastic wrap) and a layer of foil and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw the cake at room temperature overnight. Nigella's Traditional Christmas Cake recipe (from NIGELLA CHRISTMAS) suggests that the cake can be stored for up to 6 weeks.

Put the flour, grated nutmeg, mixed spice, butter, sugar, eggs, chopped almonds, black treacle and the citrus zest into a large bowl and beat well to mix thoroughly. Fold in the soaked fruits. Spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin and spread out evenly with the back of a spoon.

25 rolls around — a fact that gave birth to an unfortunate bit of old Japanese slang: "Christmas cake" was used to refer to an unmarried woman who was over 25 and thus, considered past her prime.

Christmas cakes are also commonly made with pudding while a fruit cake uses butter, however there are Christmas cake recipes that do contain butter. The traditional Scottish Christmas cake, also known as the Whisky Dundee, is very popular. It is a light crumbly cake with currants, raisins, cherries and Scotch whisky.

Some say you should make your Christmas cake 6 weeks before eating, but the advice given on Nigella.com is that 12 weeks before is the optimum time to get baking. Your Christmas cake should be fed every 4 to 6 weeks but in the meantime, after baking, it should be stored away in a secure, air tight container.

Fruit cakes can generally be stored for up to a year in the freezer. But they could probably last for even longer. This is because the alcohol prevents mould and kills bacteria and the sugar helps to preserve the cake for longer. The dried fruit in the Christmas cake has 'low water activity'.

If you don't have treacle then you can use molasses as an alternative. We would not use extra sugar instead of the treacle as treacle is an invert sugar, which particularly helps to keep the cake moist.

What alcohol should you use? Strong, flavourful spirits with a high ABV are ideal for feeding fruitcakes. You can use rum, brandy or whisky for spice, or if you like citrus flavours, try an orange liqueur. Cherry brandy and amaretto will also work well if you prefer these.

Grease and line pans with brown paper, waxed paper, or parchment. Grease again. Cut paper about 1 inch taller than pans. Fill pans a little over half full with batter.

How long do you soak fruit in alcohol for Christmas cake? ›

You can soak the fruit for days (or weeks) by adding alcohol and mixing as you go, allowing the dried fruit to soak up all the liquid. We do this by adding alcohol (or fruit juice or even a mix) bit by bit until the fruit is plump, or you can just soak overnight and add the rest of the alcohol after the cake is baked.

What is the best alcohol to put in a Christmas cake? A reasonably strong spirit (such as whisky, rum or brandy) with a warm, fiery flavour or a sweet liqueur (such as cherry brandy or amaretto – NOT a cream liqueur) will compliment the flavour of the cake, and help to preserve the cake, so it will keep for longer.

Plain flour is fine as the cake isn't going to significantly rise. You are looking to achieve a dense, moist texture that is evenly distributed with flavoursome vine fruits. Gluten free alternatives: opt for a combination of flours.

Why do my cakes always seem too dry? A: Too much baking powder. In oven for too long or not packed as soon as cool.

It was common practice to include small silver coins in the pudding mixture, which could be kept by the person whose serving included them. The usual choice was a silver threepence or a sixpence.

For a long time it's been common practice to include silver Christmas pudding coins, charms or tokens into Christmas pudding. Finding a Christmas coin in your slice of pudding is believed to bring good luck and especially wealth in the coming year.

A king cake, also known as a three kings cake, is a cake associated in many countries with Epiphany. Its form and ingredients are variable, but in most cases a fève ( lit. 'fava bean') such as a figurine, often said to represent the Christ Child, is hidden inside.

A fève is a small trinket hidden in a king cake or similar dessert. They may also be known as trinkets or favors. The French word fève translates to 'fava bean', which is what was originally hidden in the cake.