,

Last-minute Christmas cake

Instructions

Advertising
  1. Put the dried fruit, tea, sweetener, and mixed spice in a non-stick pan over medium heat and slowly bring to a boil, stirring. Simmer, uncovered, for 3 minutes then remove from the heat, cover and leave to plump up overnight.
  2. The next day, preheat your oven to 160°C/fan 140°C/gas 3 and line the base and sides of a deep 20cm x 20cm cake tin with non-stick baking paper.
  3. Put the pumpkin or squash in a pan of boiling water over a high heat and cook for 15 minutes. Drain well, tip into your food processor and whizz into a smooth purée.
  4. Stir the puréed pumpkin or squash, eggs, Sarson’s Browning and bicarbonate of soda into the fruit mixture, then sift over both flours and gently mix in.
  5. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and lightly level the surface. Bake the cake for 1 hour or until a skewer pushed into the centre comes out clean. Leave the cake to cool in the tin. Once it’s cooled and you’re ready to serve it, remove the cake from the tin and cut it into 20 slices. You can wrap the cake in greaseproof paper and foil then store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Note
 

Advertising