Christmas cake

Another good tip I learnt at college when marzipaning a cake was to start off by filling all the small holes on the cake with tiny pieces of marzipan so that you get a really smooth base for the marzipan layer. I hadn't realised till I took a close look at my cakes how many little holes you end up with! We also had to make a long kind of sausage shaped piece, about the diameter of a pencil which was tucked around the base of the cake which helped, when using in conjunction with a spirit level, to make sure the cake is flat on the top and sides and you get a beautifully lovely finish to the cake. One of those plastic sugarpaste smoothers that you can pick up in Hobbycraft or Homesense are really great for helping with a smooth finish too

One year my mother realised she had forgotten the glacé cherries so spaced them whole over the top of the cake. A red and gold ribbon around it was one of the prettiest ever.
I always turn the cake over and feed it from the bottom. I've used grand Marnier in the past and amaretto. I'm think ing of just doing a boiled fruit cake the week before Christmas this year.

Mapleleaf, thank you also for that.

Mercedes55, Thank you. I was treating it like cupcakes.

Oh, forgot to say, ElroodFan.I don't marzipan or ice my cakes but decorate the top with almonds just before putting it in the oven. However, if you do want to marzipan and ice your cake, let it rest and marzipan it the week before xmas, let it dry over a couple of days in your storage box, then ice it.
When you make your cake, cool it in the tin for 30 minutes, then remove it to a wire rack to finish cooling. Feed it with booze of choice when cold, then wrap in double layer of grease proof then either wrap in foil or store in an airtight tin, feeding it every week or so.

Hi, ElroodFan
If you want to make a traditional rich xmas cake, then you need to be making it now. However, you could make a lighter, Dundee cake in the next few weeks and feed it with whisky or brandy once a week. I'm doing one this year and aim to make it next weekend. Delia has a good recipe. I add cinnamon and mixed spice to it to give it a more Christmassy feel, and feed it weekly as I mentioned above.
Hope that helps.

I have always made my own cake etc, Now I have to as DGD, who loves all the mixed fruit Christmas goodies is allergic to nuts and it is the only way we can be sure that cake, pudding and pies are nut free

I cool the cake partly in the tin and partly out. like others i wrap it in greaseproof paper then foil. I pour brandy liberally into the cake. The resulting cake weighs a ton but gets even surprisingly quickly.

Always feed my Christmas cake with brandy once a week then wrap in greaseproof then foil. Like the apple tip.

I don’t think leaving it to cool overnight would be a problem. It takes hours to cool down anyway so you’d leave it out for at least that time,and it will feel very heavy and solid. Sometimes I just remove a little bit from the centre, underneath, where it’s not visible, for a taste, to make sure it’s ok. I wrap in greaseproof and then foil and every few days, open it up and gently dribble a little alcohol..brandy...or sherry...into it, up until the time I start to decorate it. I’m sure yours will be fine. I always think of Christmas cakes as fairly foolproof and indestructible!?

Yes, feed it lots of brandy. Or sherry (it has half the alcohol). And wrap it in foil.

It is a Delia Smith recipe that I used!

Definitely feed it with some brandy. Prick the cake all over and then pour about a good tablespoon of brandy over it.
No, that is just the start !
Add more over the next few weeks. In total, I would feed mine about 1/4 of a pint of brandy.
The result was a fabulously moist, delicious but boozy cake.
( Not recommended for drivers) ?

I always let my Christmas cake cool at room temperature and turn it upside down as I find the weight of the cake more or less makes the slightly domed top flatten out somewhat.

I did a cake decorating course at college and we made a lot of rich fruit cakes for that and our tutor always told us to double wrap in parchment paper and then foil as the alcohol in the cake shouldn't come into contact with the cake.

ElroodFan you can in theory marzipan a cake quite soon after it's been baked and cooled but of course you lose the opportunity to 'feed' the cake. I'd recommend leaving a good few days between the marzipan and icing as it takes a few days for the marzipan to fully dry out, I always put my cake in a cardboard cake box once it's had the marzipan put on as the marzipan will seal the cake as will the coat of icing.

I'm also a fan of the Delia Smith Christmas cake.

Cake mixture....me too Maggiemaybe...but then we’re the sane ones!! I agree totally, wrap in cling first or grease proof THEN tin foil.

I always use greaseproof paper(a double layer) and foil on top. I feed with brandy every week. I use the Delia Smith recipe, and it usually goes down well. As she says, no cake with all those good ingredients can fail, even if it doesn't rise much!

Agree with all above esp using grease paper next to cake not foil. Have never used apple juice though. I'm teetotal (not through choice just can't even stand the smell of the stuff☹️)
DH doses cake with alcohol every now and then, overdid it one year and it was like alcoholic bread pudding-I couldn't eat any of it at all so I keep an eye on him now.
For a few years I've bought ready made marzipan and ready made icing too. Lovely and icing not as hard as royal icing.

Yes you can 'inject' with brandy or rum. It's recommended we do this at intervals to rich fruit cakes while they are being 'stored'. I often have to shave off the dry top of a cake before icing. With the best will in the world, if cakes are to be cooked through in the centre, they will tend to be drier on the top and sides. I made mine last week, and the top is cracked.

I always feed the brandy into the bottom of the cake, turning it upside down first of course!
The tip of cutting up an apple and putting it in the tin is a good one.

Decided this year to make a Xmas cake for the first time ever. Was going to make it nearer Xmas am I leaving it too late in view of the fact others have made theirs already. I thought I would just marzipan and ice it when cold. Is this wrong?

I always, always prefer the raw cake mixture to the finished product, whatever the cake!

Lucky, sorry to hear about your cake, but cakes that are very rich in fruit, rarely rise much at all. I made ours yesterday, and the fruit had been soaking in calvados for three days. It smells wonderful (sorry). I never lick the spoon of unbaked cake mix, but this time, it smelled so good I did, oh my, lovely.

I do the same as Merlotgran. Take a thin slice of the top (it is always easier to marzipan and ice the flat underside anyway) and you will then see that the cake is not as dry as you think). I use a knitting needle to spike around 10/12 holes and feed it with brandy every 10/12 days and keep it wrapped in greaseproof and foil.

I have turned it upside down and think I will use the flat bottom to ice it. The top is insufficiently risen to make a bumpy base - the lack of rising is a source of concern!

Thanks for the tip about apple juice - I will try that too.

I have been making Christmas cakes and puddings for over 50 years and this weekend my granddaugbter helped. I never wrap them until they are cold and then wrap them in clingfilm. I then feed them with brandy or whisky for a few weeks. They often do feel dry on the top when first cooled but quickly mellow, though I sometimes take a small slice from the top, which not only gets rid of any protruding nuts or fruit but makes them easier to ice.

I use apple juice to feed the cake and it works well - if you don't want alcohol, juice is fine. Not sure about lemon juice - might be too sour.