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A Very Rich Fruit Cake for Weddings, Birthdays and Christmas. |
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A Very Rich Fruit Cake for Weddings, Birthdays or Christmas
The quantities of ingredients required for tins from 6 inches to 12 inches in diameter for round tins and 5 inches to 11 inches across for square tins are given. For a three-tier Wedding Cake, it is usual for the top tier to be 2 - 3 inches smaller than the second one and the second tier to be 3 - 4 inches smaller than the bottom one.
NOTE: Very rich fruit cakes should be made at least 2 - 3 weeks before they are required, to allow them to mature. The fruit (currants, sultanas and raisins) should be washed and thoroughly dried before use. Rub dry in a cloth, remove any stems, etc., and leave in a warm place to finish drying. If more convenient, the cake can be made one day and baked the next.
Method:
| Have ready the dried fruit. prepare the cake tin. Line inside with double greaseproof paper and protect the outside against over-baking of the crust. To do this, tie corrugated paper, several layers of brown paper or several layers of newspaper round the outside of the tin, and stand on corrugated paper or several layers of paper on a baking sheet. Place greaseproof paper over the top of the cake half-way through the baking time if the top browns too quickly. |
| Stone raisins; cut the cherries in four. Blanch the almonds if necessary (cover with cold water; bring to boil; drain; remove skins; dry). Chop finely. |
| Mix the prepared fruit, almonds, peel and lemon rind together in a mixing bowl and pour the brandy over it, if used. (If liked, leave covered overnight.) |
| Sieve the flour, nutmeg and mixed spice and add the ground almonds. |
| Cream the margarine and sugar together until light and fluffy. |
| Beat in the treacle, if used. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating each in thoroughly and adding a little sieved flour with every egg after the first. |
| Fold in the remaining flour mixture with the prepared fruit, etc., half at a time, gently and thoroughly, until well mixed. |
| Put in the prepared cake tin and smooth the top with the back of a wet spoon. |
| Bake in the pre-heated oven until firm to touch, a minimum of 3 hours. (Test by thrusting a warmed metal skewer into the middle. It should come out clean with no uncooked mixture clinging to it.) |
| Remove from oven and leave in tin for 10 minutes. Turn out, remove paper and cool on a wire tray. |
| When completely cold wrap in double greaseproof paper and store in an airtight container. |
Baking Time: The depth of the mixture will be similar in each tin so the time required will vary more according to the baking conditions than to the cake size. Check, and if necessary test, at intervals after the first 3 hrs.
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Ingredients |
Round
6" dia |
Round
7" dia Square 6" x 6" |
Round
8" dia Square 7" x 7" |
Round
9" dia Square 8" x 8" |
Round
10" dia Square 9" x 9" |
Round
11" dia Square 10" x 10" |
Round
12" dia Square 11" x 11" |
| Currants | 6 oz | 8 oz | 10 oz | 13 oz | 1 lb | 1 lb 4 oz | 1 lb 8 oz |
| Sultanas | 4 oz | 5 oz | 7 oz | 9 oz | 11 oz | 13 oz | 1 lb |
| Raisins | 2 oz | 3 oz | 4 oz | 5 oz | 6 oz | 7 oz | 8 oz |
| Glace Cherries | 11/2 oz | 2 oz | 21/2 oz | 31/2 oz | 4 oz | 5 oz | 6 oz |
| Whole Sweet Almonds | 11/2 oz | 2 oz | 21/2 oz | 31/2 oz | 4 oz | 5 oz | 6 oz |
| Mixed Cut Peel | 11/2 oz | 2 oz | 21/2 oz | 31/2 oz | 4 oz | 5 oz | 6 oz |
| Grated Lemon Rind | 1/2 oz | 1 oz | 1 oz | 1 oz | 2 oz | 2 oz | 2 oz |
| Brandy (optional) | 1 tbl spn | 11/2 tbl spn | 2 tbl spn | 21/2 tbl spn | 3 tbl spn | 31/2 tbl spn | 4 tbl spn |
| Plain Flour | 4 oz | 6 oz | 7 oz | 9 oz | 11 oz | 14 oz | 1 lb |
| Mixed Spice | 1/2 lvl tea spn | 3/4 lvl tea spn | 1 lvl tea spn | 11/4 lvl tea spn | 11/2 lvl tea spn | 11/2 lvl tea spn | 2 lvl tea spn |
| Nutmeg | 1/4 lvl tea spn | 1/4 lvl tea spn | 1/2 lvl tea spn | 1/2 lvl tea spn | 3/4 lvl tea spn | 3/4 lvl tea spn | 1 lvl tea spn |
| Ground Almonds | 1 oz | 11/2 oz | 2 oz | 21/2 oz | 3 oz | 31/2 oz | 4 oz |
| Table Margarine | 31/2 oz | 5 oz | 6 oz | 8 oz | 10 oz | 12 oz | 14 oz |
| Soft Brown Sugar | 31/2 oz | 5 oz | 6 oz | 8 oz | 10 oz | 12 oz | 14 oz |
| Black Treacle | 1/2 tbl spn | 1 tbl spn | 1 tbl spn | 1 tbl spn | 11/2 tbl spn | 2 tbl spn | 2 tbl spn |
| Eggs | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| Oven Shelf | Middle | Middle | Middle | Middle | Middle | Middle | Middle |
| Temperature | Very slow Gas 1 : 2900F |
Very slow Gas 1 : 2900F |
Very slow Gas 1 : 2900F |
Very slow Gas 1 : 2900F |
Very slow Gas 1 : 2900F |
Very slow Gas 1 : 2900F |
Very slow Gas 1 : 2900F |
Marzipan for Top: If cake sides are to be covered with Marzipan, double these quantities.
| Put the ground almonds, icing sugar and castor sugar in a mixing bowl and mix together. |
| Add the lemon juice, almond essence and enough beaten egg to mix into a fairly firm paste. Gather together with fingers. |
| Turn out onto a board dusted with sieved icing sugar and knead until smooth. |
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Ingredients |
Round
6" dia |
Round
7" dia Square 6" x 6" |
Round
8" dia Square 7" x 7" |
Round
9" dia Square 8" x 8" |
Round
10" dia Square 9" x 9" |
Round
11" dia Square 10" x 10" |
Round
12" dia Square 11" x 11" |
| Ground Almonds | 5 oz | 4 oz | 9 oz | 11 oz | 14 oz | 1 lb 1 oz | 1 lb 4 oz |
| Icing Sugar (sieved) | 21/2 oz | 31/2 oz | 41/2 oz | 51/2 oz | 7 oz | 81/2 oz | 10 oz |
| Castor Sugar | 21/2 oz | 31/2 oz | 41/2 oz | 51/2 oz | 7 oz | 81/2 oz | 10 oz |
| Lemon Juice | 1/2 tea spn | 3/4 tea spn | 1 tea spn | 1 tea spn | 11/2 tea spn | 11/2 tea spn | 2 tea spn |
| Almond Essence | 1 drop | 1 drop | 2 drops | 2 drops | 3 drops | 3 drops | 4 drops |
| Eggs (approx) | 1/2 small | 1/2 small | 1 small | 1 small | 1 large | 1 large | 1 large |
Royal Icing for Top and Sides: Eggs vary in size. If the icing is too stiff, add a little more egg white.
| Sieve the icing sugar. |
| Put the egg whites and lemon juice into a mixing bowl and beat with a fork or whisk until frothy. |
| Add the icing sugar, a tablespoon at a time, beating each addition in very thoroughly until it is completely smooth. When about half the icing sugar has been beaten in, use a wooden spoon to beat in the remainder until the icing stands up in straight points when the spoon is lifted up quickly. When this stage is reached, stop adding sugar. |
| Beat in the glycerine. Add the colouring (if used) from the end of a skewer. |
| Cover the bowl with a cloth wrung out in cold water to prevent a skin forming. Keep covered all the time, only removing it to lift out some icing but covering again immediately. |
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Ingredients |
Round
6" dia |
Round
7" dia Square 6" x 6" |
Round
8" dia Square 7" x 7" |
Round
9" dia Square 8" x 8" |
Round
10" dia Square 9" x 9" |
Round
11" dia Square 10" x 10" |
Round
12" dia Square 11" x 11" |
| White of Eggs (approx) | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| Icing Sugar (sieved) | 1 lb | 1 lb | 1 lb 8 oz | 1 lb 8 oz | 2 lb | 2 lb | 2 lb 8 oz |
| Fresh Lemon Juice | 1 drop | 1 drop | 2 drops | 2 drops | 3 drops | 3 drops | 4 drops |
| Glycerine (approx) | 1 tea spn | 1 tea sp | 11/2 tea sp | 11/2 tea sp | 2 tea sp | 2 tea sp | 21/2 tea sp |
| Colouring as desired |
Anne Wallace Sugar Sifter Competition
Melted Plain Gingerbread
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Ingredients |
Ingredients |
| 100gm/4oz Margarine | 225gm/8oz Plain Flour |
| 100gm/4oz Soft Brown Sugar | 2*5ml/2 teaspoons Ground Ginger |
| 1*15ml/1 tablespoon Syrup | 2*5ml/2 teaspoons Ground Cinnamon |
| 1*15ml/1 tablespoon Treacle | 2*5ml/2 teaspoons Bicarbonate of Soda |
| 1 cup Boiling Water | 2 Eggs |
Method:
Melt margarine, sugar, treacle and syrup in pan, take off heat and allow to cool. Sift flour, spices and bicarbonate of soda into a bowl. Add melted mixture, lightly beaten eggs, mix well and lastly add boiling water. Pour into a lined tin. Bake in oven 160 C; 300 F; Gas Mark 2-21/2 for about 1 hour.
(By Lorna Milne)
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1lb Pork Fillet 2 Teasp cooking oil | ||||||||||||||
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For the marinade
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Remove any membrane from the pork, put the pork in a large dish . Combine the marinade ingredients and pour over the pork. Cover the dish. Marinade in the fridge for at least 2 hours turning the pork occasionally. | ||||||||||||||
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Remove the pork from the marinade and dry with kitchen paper. Using a sharp knife cut the pork into slices. Reserve the marinade. | ||||||||||||||
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Heat half the oil in a non stick frying pan. Add a single layer of pork slices. Cook over a medium heat for three minutes on each side, or until no longer pink in the centre. Remove from the pan and keep warm. Repeat with the remaining oil and pork. | ||||||||||||||
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Pour the marinade into the pan, boil rapidly for 5-10 minutes or until thickened. Return the pork to the pan and stir until coated in the mixture. Serve immediately. Serve with potato wedges and a crisp green salad. | ||||||||||||||
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Prepare ahead
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Tomato Roasted Red Pepper&Orange Soup
(By Lorna Milne)
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Ingredients:
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Place the red peppers in an ovenproof dish and drizzle with olive oil.Roast in a hot oven till the skin starts to blacken. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Allow to cool then remove the skins and chop the flesh. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Fry the onions in olive oil till translucent. Add chopped tomatoes, peppers, vegetable stock and sugar. Season well. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 20 minutes. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Liquidise to a smooth puree and add orange juice. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Reheat gently and serve. | ||||||||||||||||||
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For a richer flavour add a little cream to serve. |
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