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Fruit Cake Recipes

(Metric)

Fruit Cake Recipes

(Imperial)

Method

Grease and line the cake tin

Set oven to 160 deg C,325 deg F, Gas Mark 3

Cream butter, sugar, treacle and ground almonds together until light and creamy.

Add the egs one at a time, beating well.

Stir in the grated lemon rind.

Weigh the flour and stir in the mixed spice.

Weigh the fruit and nuts and mix into the spiced flour.

Add the flour and fruit mix to the mixture, folding in carefuly until well mixed.  If mixutre is very stiff, add a little milk.  The mixture should be of a dropping consistency (not sloppy).

Put mixture into cake tin and level top.

Cook for about one hour (for small cakes up to 8 inches (20 cm) and one and a half hours for the larger cakes at 160 deg C, 325 deg F, Gas Mark 3 then reduce to 150 deg C, 300 deg F, Gas Mark 2 until a skewar comes out clean.

Reduce the cooking temperature if the cake starts to rise.

Difficulty  (3)

These little cakes are baked in a 4″ tin and make lovely gifts for family and friends.

 You may click on any picture in this guide to enlarge it

An 8″ round cake recipe will make 3 of these cakes or alternatively if you are making a large cake for example an 8″, use a 10″ recipe instead and make one small cake at the same time.

Feed and wrap for a couple of weeks before decorating.

To Decorate

You will need a 6″ board and box.  These are available by mail order from a Piece of Cake Thame.
500 grams marzipan
500 grams fondant
Coloured fondant to decorate

Cover the cake in Marzipan and Fondant

To mark round the side of the cake where the frills are to go, take a piece of greaseproof paper long enough to go around the cake and then fold it in half.  Using a cup or other round object draw a semi-circle and cut this out.  Place against the cake and using a pointed modelling tool or the point of a knife, mark along the top of the paper template to create an indentation in the fondant.

Using a small writing tube, pipe small dots or shells around the base of the cake.  Leave to dry.

Make holly leaves and berries

Using red fondant, roll out thinly.

Using a frill cutter or a biscuit cutter and an egg cup to make the centre hole cut out a circle.

Make a cut through the fondant frill and open up.

Using a small dowel and some cornflower, carefully work round the circle by rolling the dowel from side to side to ‘frill’ the fluted edge of the fondant.

Cut the ends to make them straight and tidy.

Using a small clean artists brush and some cool boiled water, brush a little water over the indents you made on the side of the cake.

Gently lift the frill and place the one end on to the dampend indent on the cake and working along this mark, gently press the frill onto the cake.

Using a modelling tool or a cocktail stick, gently lift the bottom edge of the frill from the cake to arrange into folds.  Continue round the cake and leave to dry overnight.

When dry take a small artists brush and gently brush off any cornflour.  Repeat with a white fill directly above the red one.  When the second frill is in place, using a small pointed knife, trim the top edge of the frill where it is joined to the cake to make a neat edge.  If the frill starts to fall from the cake just brush a little water onto the cake and re-attach it.

Using white royal icing and a writing tube, pipe a line of dots along the trimmed edge of the frill.  At the top point of each curve, pipe a line of dots up to the top edge of the cake.

The top of the cake can then be decorated.  If you have made large cakes, any left over holly leaves and berries can be used on the little cake.  Holly leaves around a Christmas Roses are also effective and a Pointsettia is a simple but effective decoration.

 
Starting with the large cutter and progressing down to the smallest, cut out 10, 9, 8 and 7 petals.
Dampen the top of the cake with a little boiled water and start to arrange the large petals in a flower shape leaving a small space in the centre.  As you lay the petals, bend some of them so they do not lay completely flat.  Continue with the smallet petals placing the next size in between the last size.

Taking the yellow fondant make 5 small balls.  Roll the ball to make a small cone shape and use a Ball Tool to hollow out the cone.  Paint the centre of the cone with a little green food colouring and place in the centre of the flower with a little royal icing. 

Display in box.

This whisked sponge is much lighter than a traditional Victoria Sandwich.  It benefits from being kept in a sealed tin for 24 hours before decorating/eating to become lovely and moist.

To make the sponge

3 eggs
3 oz (85 g) Margarine (melted)
5oz (142 g) caster sugar
4 oz (114 g) flour (sifted)
Half teaspoon vanilla extract

2 x 7″ round sandwich tins, greased and floured

Set oven to 180 deg C, 350 F or Gas Mark 4.

Using an electric mixer, whisk together the eggs and caster sugar until mixture is light and creamy and leaves a trail when you take the whisk out of the mixture.  Gently Fold in the melted margarine and then the sifted flour and vanilla extract.  Stir just enough to mix in the flour as mixing too much will ‘knock’ the air out and the sponge will not be light.

Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the oven for approx 15 minutes until the cake is firm to the touch and appears to be shrinking from the edges.  Remove from the oven and leave in the tin for 5 minutes before turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

This cake can be flavoured as follows:

• Grated rind of a lemon or orange stirred into the mixture with the flour.
• One Teaspoon of coffee granules disolved with one teaspoon of boiling water.  Leave to cool before adding with the melted margarine.
• Cocoa can be used to replace 1 oz of the flour and sifted in with the rest of the flour.  It helps to add half a teaspoon of baking powder to the chocolate recipe.

Click on any picture to enlarge

These muffins and light and fluffy with a delicate flavour.  As blueberries do not have a strong flavour, vanilla essence is added. They are best eaten on the day they are made or the next.

Ingredients (Makes 12)

Place Muffin Cases into a muffin tin and set oven to 190 deg C, 375 deg F or Gas Mark 5

175g (6oz) caster sugar
285g (10oz) self raising flour (sifted)
100g Fresh Blueberries (chopped)
2 Eggs
150ml (1/4 pint) milk
8 Tablespoons sunflower oil
1 tsp Vanilla Extract

To Make

Mix sugar and flour into a bowl.

Beat eggs and vanilla extract into the milk and oil. Quickly stir into dry ingredients and add blueberries (over-mixing will make the muffins tough). Divide the mixture between muffin cases and bake for 20-25 minutes, until the muffins have risen and are firm to the touch.

Remove from the oven and leave for 5 minutes before transfering them to a wire rack. Serve warm or cold.

These muffins can be frozen. After defrosting warm through in a hot oven for a few minutes.

These delicious cake bars are so easy to make and requires no cooking at all.  The only problem you will have is stopping people eating it so why not make double as it keeps very well in the fridge.

You may click on any image in this guide to enlarge it.

The following ingredients are a guide only as you can add what you like to this cake.  Just follow the basic quantities and create your own masterpiece.

Ingredients

400g chocolate (dark or milk)
Packet of shortcake biscuits
1 tin of condensed milk
100g butter
Bag of marshmallows
100g of cherries, raisins, chopped apricots, chopped nuts, sultanas or a mixture of anything you have in your store cupboard
7″ square cake tin
Cling film.

Line the tin with the cling film (this makes it easy to lift the Rocky Road out when it has set).

Break up the shortcake biscuits into rough chunks and place to one side.

Melt the chocolate and butter in a saucepan over a low heat or on defrost in the microwave.  When melted, remove from the heat, stir well and add the condensed milk, then stir until well mixed and smooth.

Tip the biscuits into the chocolate mixture along with all the other fruits and marshmallows and stir until everything is coated in chocolate.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and flatten out with the back of a tablespoon.  Put in the fridge to set.

When set, remove from the tin by turning upsidedown on a chopping board and removing the clingfilm.  Cut into bars and store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Ribbon insertion is very simple to achieve but gives a very impressive look to your cake and is certain to get that ‘wow’ factor.

You may click on any image in this guide to enlarge it.

You will need
Cake covered with fondant icing
Coloured narrow ribbon (available from all cake decorating shops)
A pair of scissors
Tweezers
Greaseproof paper
Pointed knife

Cover the cake with fondant icing and leave for 24 hours to firm slightly and create a skin on the surface.

Take the ribbon and cut out lots of small pieces approx 1 cm in length and put to one side.

Decide where you want the ribbon to be on the cake.  In the picture above, it is used to edge the top of the cake.  To ensure it is evenly spaced from the edge, a template is made from greaseproof paper.

Cut a circle of greaseproof paper smaller than the diameter of the cake and lay it on top of the icing.  Being careful not to press your fingers into the icing, cut slots into the icing on the cake using the template as a guide.  Make the slots in pairs approx 0.5 cm wide and 1.0 cm apart.

Using the tweezers, carefully insert one end of a strip of ribbon into one of the slots of a pair.

Carefully bend the ribbon over and push into the second slot.  You may find the the point of a blunt knife helps.

Continue round the cake

When you have gone all the way round.  Using the flat of your hand, rub over the top of the ribon to smooth out any rough edges and to push the ribbon into place.

Leave to dry fully and decorate as required.

This cake may be preferred if you have children as it has chocolate mini eggs and little chicks.

You may click on any image in this guide to enlarge it.

You will need

8″ round baked Simnel Cake
500 grams marzipan
Seedless jam
Small amount of Royal Icing
Bag of chocolate mini eggs
Small Chicks (these are available from card shops for a few pence each)
10″ round cake board
Baking parchment
1 mtr ribbon

Take the baked simnel cake and place on the cake board.  Using the tin it was baked in as a template, roll out marzipan and cut out a circle.

Spread the top of the cake with the jam and place the cirle of marzipan on top.  Smooth surface and gently ease the edges of the marzipan over the edge of the cake to give a smooth finish.

Place a saucer on top of the cake and using a flat bladed knife, ‘draw’ round the saucer.

Using the remaining marzipan, make 11 (13 if you want to include all the disciples and Jesus)  balls and place evenly round the edge of the cake.

At this point you can put the cake under a medium grill to toast the marzipan balls as in the Simnel Easter Cake or you may prefer to leave it as it is.

Fill the centre of the circle with Royal Icing and spread out.  Press the chocolate mini eggs into the icing at the edge of the circle and place 2 little chicks with a couple of eggs in the centre.

Cut 2 strips of baking parchment the same depth of the cake and cover the outside edge, using tape to keep in position (see Simnel Easter Cake).

Finally attach the yellow ribbon around the cake and tape into position.  I tend to use the paper type florists ribbon.  The remaining ribbon can then be used to make a bow and the rest torn into thinner strips. Using the blunt edge of a knife, place the strips between the edge of the knife and your thumb, press hard and pull the strips towards you to create frills.  Tie several together and tape to the cake using double sided sticky tape.

This cake is very easy to decorate and as it does not have any icing it is not too sweet.

You may click on any image in this guide to enlarge it.

You will need

8″ round baked Simnel Cake
500 grams marzipan
Seedless jam
10″ round cake board
Baking parchment
1 mtr ribbon

Take the baked simnel cake and place on the cake board.  Using the tin it was baked in as a template, roll out marzipan and cut out a circle.

Spread the top of the cake with the jam and place the cirle of marzipan on top.  Smooth surface and gently ease the edges of the marzipan over the edge of the cake to give a smooth finish.

Place a saucer on top of the cake and using a flat bladed knife, ‘draw’ round the saucer, then mark criss cross lines within the cirle you have marked.

Using the remaining marzipan, make 11 (13 if you want to include all the disciples and Jesus)  balls and place evenly round the edge of the cake.

Place the cake under a medium grill until the  grid and balls are golden brown.

Cut 2 strips of baking parchment the same depth of the cake and cover the outside edge, using tape to keep in position.

Finally attach the yellow ribbon around the cake and tape into position.  I tend to use the paper type florists ribbon.  The remaining ribbon can then be used to make a bow and the rest torn into thinner strips. Using the blunt edge of a knife, place the strips between the edge of the knife and your thumb, press hard and pull the strips towards you to create frills.  Tie several together and tape to the cake using double sided sticky tape.

This is traditional Easter Cake and is fairly Easy to make.  It is simply a fruitcake with a layer of marzipan cooked into the centre of the cake.

You may click on any image in this guide to enlarge it.

Recipe

225 grams (8 oz) butter
225 grams (8 oz) caster sugar
4 eggs
500 grams (1 lb 4 oz) mixed dried fruit
115 grams (4 oz) cherries (halved)
275 grams (10 oz) SR flour
1 tsp mixed spice
1 tbs milk
675 grams (1 lb 8oz) marzipan

8 inch round cake tin, greased and lined

Beat butter and sugar together until soft and creamy.  Beat eggs together and add to the mixture.  Add dried fruit to the flour and spices and mix to coat the fruit with flour.  Fold the fruit and flour into the mixture.  Add milk and stir in.

Roll out the marzipan and using the base of the tin as a template cut out a circle.

Spoon half the cake mixture into the prepared tin and spread out.  Place the marzipan round on top of this and gently press down.

Add the rest of the mixture and spread out to give an even surface.

Cover the outside of the tin with 2 layers of newspaper and bake in the preheated oven at 160 deg for 1 hour.  Reduce to 150 deg for a further one and a half hours or until the cake is cooked.

Note.  If testing if cake is baked using the skewar method, be aware that the melted marzipan can look like raw cake mixture.