Mummy's Christmas Cake!

Mummy has finally finished her Chrismas cake.....Tadaa!

Here's the Recipe:
350g/12oz self-raisng flour
1 tsp mixed spice
100g/4oz ground almonds
500g/18oz mixed dried fruit with peel
100g/4oz dried cranberries
100g/4oz of havled cherries
100g/4oz chopped nuts
4 eggs beaten
6tbs milk
2tbs brandy or rum-I used Apricot brandy
225g/8oz butter
10g/4oz castor sugar
100g/4oz of dark brown sugar

1.Sift the flour with the mixed spice the mix in the ground almonds.
2.Clean the dried fruit in a separate bowl.
3.In another bowl stir the beaten eggs ,milk and brand together.
4.In a large bowl cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy,then stir in the flour a bit at a time with some of the egg mixture until all the ingredients combine to form a smooth batter.
5.Gradually stir in al the dried fruit and cherries and nuts,mix thoroughly.
6.Spoon in the mixture into a 20-22cm/8inch cake tin which hasbeen lined with greaseproof paper.
7.Preheat oven to 160c/325f/gasmark 3 bake for 1 hour then recuce heat to 150c/300f/gasmark 1-2 and continue to bake for another 3 hours.For Fan assist ovens bake at 160c for 1 hour and 2 hours at 150c.

The secret is then once cooled pour small amounts of the brandy onto  the top of the cake for three days then turn the cake upside down and do this for another three days keep wrapped in foil whilest "feeding the cake" with rum or brandy then place the cake on to a cake board marzipan the cake then use royal icing or fondant "ready roll" icing to decorate the cake and add other cake decorations to your hearts content leave to set for christmas!

On a foot note our friends in the US are celebrating Thanks Giving today so we would like to wish them all HAPPY THANKS GIVING!
Hope the cake give you food for thought...hehehe
xx Speedy and Mum xx