The Best Whiskey Christmas Cake Recipe

My quest for the best Christmas cake to bake this year is over. The winning recipe was for a Whiskey cake which is effortless, moist, fruity and not too expensive.

Up until last week there were three in the running. The first: Dame Alison Holst’s Pineapple Christmas cake which she says has been baked and enjoyed by thousands of kiwis for over 30 years.Another of her evergreen recipes, it will continue to last the distance. But perhaps it was time for a change.

While browsing in Milly’s Kitchen on Ponsonby Rd and admiring their great selection of Christmassy bakeware, I spotted a second recipe which looked promising. It lay in the bottom of a square cake box made from kahikatea wood by a kiwi family business:The Wooden Cake Box Company.

Mary- Jane from Milly’s explained how this box takes the hassle out of making a Christmas cake:

“The natural timber insulates the cake as it bakes so it doesn’t need to be wrapped in layers of paper like a metal tin. You simply line the sides and bottom with baking paper and the result will be a moist, rich fruit cake.

And afterwards there’s no need to wash it, a quick brush to remove any crumbs is all that is needed.”

The Wooden Cake Box Company Christmas cake recipe looked like a winner. The ingredients were yummy: brown sugar, golden syrup, spices, chopped almonds, brandy and lots of fruit.

I did notice that the recipe contained curry powder. A curry flavoured Christmas cake did sound unusual. But I was persuaded that the curry taste is not discernable.

“It just adds a subtle warmth and richness to the cake.Don’t
leave it out,” was Mary-Jane’s advice.” It would not taste as good without it.”

At Milly’s they have baked dozens of cakes in these wooden cake boxes using this recipe and it has proved to be a failsafe method.

As we got talking, Mary- Jane divulged that she makes a Whiskey cake at home and generously promised to send me the recipe. Once her email arrived I knew that this would be the one.

Like the other two cakes it is easy to make: no need to soak the dried fruit beforehand, or cream the butter and sugar. You simply boil, simmer and stir. But what set this cake recipe apart was that it contained loads of ginger and apricots which are two of my favourite ingredients.

I used one of the wooden cake boxes to bake it. Before putting it in the oven I made a decorative pattern with almonds on the top so I wouldn’t need to bother to ice it. The batter was dense enough to prevent them from sinking. After baking I brushed a little more brandy over the top.

It’s a light fruitcake which I think is perfect for summer weather. It did need to be cut carefully with a sharp knife. I served small slices of it with tiny glasses of ice cold home- made limoncello. It went down so well that there’s not much left! I will make another.
Christmas cakes are the kind of cakes you can be creative with. You can exchange the white sugar for brown, or add a little cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice (or even curry?!)

Next time I bake this cake, instead of a pattern of almonds I’d like to try another easy topping from Delia Smith which she created for people who don’t like the extra sweetness of icing. For this brush the cake with a glaze made by heating a heaped tablespoon of apricot jam and two tablespoons of brandy. Make a pattern of toasted pecans, Brazil nuts and walnut halves over the top of the cake. Then glaze again.

To keep the cake moist I’ll wrap it in glad wrap before storing it in an airtight tin. Hopefully we’ll be able to resist further temptation so it will last the distance until Christmas day.

WHISKEY CAKE

Thanks to Mary-Jane from Milly’s Kitchen shop

https://www.millyskitchen.co.nz/

for this great recipe

In a saucepan: ½ lb butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
1+¼ lb mixed fruit (I used sultanas/
raisins/apricots)
1 pkt ginger (finely chopped)
* (I put apricots and ginger in food processor to chop)

Bring to the boil and simmer a few
minutes
Take off stove and add 1 tsp baking
soda and let cool about ½ hour.
Beat 2 eggs well and add to mixture.
Stir in 2 cups sifted flour, and add
1 tsp each vanilla/lemon and almond
essence
2 tblsp. Whiskey (I used brandy)

Mix and put in 8” square tin lined with
Baking paper.

Cook at 300F for about 1 ½ hours,
dependant on oven, check after
1 hour.