Howdy all! Hope you’ve been having a nice weekend. On a random side-note, I have literally just painted my nails and am typing like a right idiot trying not to smudge them. I hate painting my nails as they never last that long with me as I always chip them. And the waiting around while they dry drives me mad. I’m not a person who can sit still and do nothing…so here I am typing like an idiot.
This weekend has been jam-packed and I feel shattered! But I only have a three day week next week (can I get a woohoo!) as I’m off from Thursday. It’s our work Christmas do Friday and Saturday and we’re off to Bruges! And partners are allowed to come as well! So excited. But from what I’ve heard about the Christmas parties (as I wasn’t here last year), they are quite wild. So watch this space…
Today I finally made the Christmas cake. Yes, yes most people have made theirs by now…but this weekend was the only time we could really do it. It’s quite a lengthy process. We used Ben’s mum very old (from 1949!) cook book for the recipe.
It’s become a lovely tradition to make this cake. Before we had moved out, we watched Ben’s mum make it and then one year we helped her make it. And last year we made it on our own for the first time. And everyone will be able to enjoy it at Christmas. Basically we’re carrying on the tradition!
So this morning I got cracking. For once nothing went wrong (though saying that, it is currently still in the oven so…touch wood).
[Check me out being all Christmassy with PicMonkey]
Christmas Cake
- 350g (3/4lb.) butter
- 350g (3/4lb.) brown sugar
- 6 eggs
- 500g (1lb.) flour
- 500g (1lb.) sultanas
- 500g (1lb.) currants
- 100g (1/4lb.) raisins
- 150g (6 oz.) candied peel
- 50g (2 oz.) cherries, chopped
- 100g (1/4lb.) chopped almonds
- 1/2 tsp. mixed spice
- 2 tbs. dark treacle
- 1 small glass of brandy
– Preheat oven to 140C.
– Using a very large bowl, beat sugar and butter together until well combined.
– Beat in eggs one at a time until combined.
– Stir in the sifted flour, fruit, almonds, spice treacle and brandy. Mix well.
– Transfer to a tin well lined with baking paper. Bake for 6 hours and 20 mins.
Mixing all the ingredients together is like an arm workout. Seriously it’s so thick by the end. And our bowl was almost too small to contain it all!
The cake is still in the oven and the smell is deeeelicious. But when it comes out we’ll need to cut the top bit off it as this will be very crispy and might even be burnt. Then we’ll get a lovely square cake which we’ll let cool and then wrap up for at least a week until we then marzipan and ice it.
As there’s always too much mixture for the tin, we tend to do a mini loaf. Though this year I wanted to make something a bit different…
Mini Christmas cakes! Christmas cake muffins if you like. They themselves took an hour to cook! That’s how beasty and dense the cake batter is.
And this weekend I also went for a solo off-road run in my brand, new, amazing off-road trainers. I can’t stress just how much I adore these shoes.
Check out those amazing treads!! Technically they’re a Christmas present from my sister…but I was allowed them early. So I ran a nice and easy (read: I didn’t go fast) 6 mile this morning to test them out.
And my trainers rocked.
[Before and after]
Not looking quite as shiny as before now but who really buys trainers to keep clean??
And a while ago now I was sent some Greek yogurts to try out: Total Greek Yogurt split pots (honey, blueberry, strawberry, and raspberry with pomegranate).
I’m not a massive fan of snacking on Greek yogurt, or yogurt in general I must say. I prefer to add them into things to thicken up sauces etc. I’m not too keen on the taste of Greek yogurt on it’s own. That being said…the idea of adding something sweet and fruity to the yogurt appealed to me.
The yogurt was very thick and creamy and adding in the fruit/honey compote made them much more exciting I found. The sugar content is quite high for each yogurt (around 11g per 100g and they’re 170g pots) but they were very tasty. And very filling (8g protein)!
A lovely afternoon treat I’d say
Right I’m off to make dinner – baked chicken with plums! Nom nom nom.
What have you been up to this weekend?
Are you making/have you made a Christmas cake this year?
Do you like to run on roads or off-roads?
I’m exactly the same with painting my nails, they always chip so fast! That Christmas cake recipe looks amazing, I wish I’d kept some of my nanas old books
Yeah it’s amazing the recipes in this book, I was terrified I’d spill something on it as I’m so clumsy.
Ah the mud is a badge of honour for your shoes!
I have indeed make my cake, but I never cut it to smooth it out- I go for the rustic look!
Your cakes look amazing. I’m hoping we can jazz it up with he icing, another epic task as we go for hard icing.
Wow! What a cake!! I’ve never heard of a Christmas cake…is it like fruit cake?? Can you explain the tradition to us ignorant Americans who just bake sugar cookies and gingerbread men 🙂
Hehe, it is a very rich fruit cake that ideally should be made in like November so it can then ‘mature’ until Christmas. It’s then covered in marzipan and royal icing (either hard or soft). You only need a very small slice as it is so rich and filling. It’s one of my favourite cakes, so flavourful! I love reading American blogs though as you guys bake so many yummy things I’ve never heard of, like peppermint-flavoured things.
Love your xmas cake recipe, looks fab!
Thanks, I just can’t wait to try it!
Your cake recipe sounds yummy! You’re making me so hungry!! You can’t do that to a pregnant lady! 😉
Hehe sorry! 🙂
My aim is to make a Christmas cake this year! lol – haven’t got there just yet though…. soon I’m sure! lol
Have you seen the Leibster Award going around blogs recenlty? I’ve nominated you if you’d like to play a part in it 🙂 Not offended if you don’t want to. Its just a great way of connecting bloggers. 🙂
Yeah it took us ages to get our act into gear to make it.
Ooooh amaizng, thanks so much :)) I will definitely join in with that. I’ve never done one of these survey-style things. Thank you 🙂
I’ve never made a Christmas cake! Neat that you’re using an old cookbook!
Yeah it’s so cool to be using such an old recipe. It’s a bit of an epic task but well worth it on Christmas day.
I can never keep my finger nails painted for long. I swear within a day or two they are chipped. && just like you, I have no patience when it comes to waiting for them to dry. I always feel like time just slowly ticks by when I’m waiting Ha Ha.
Is it weird that I’ve never heard of “Christmas cake”? It does sound ridiculously good though! Question for you: How far away are you from London’s airport?
Yep and as soon as you think the nails are dry you do something, knock one of them and it smudges!! Waste of time.
No not weird at all, apparently it seems to be a British thing! It’s just a tradition of ours to make one and all the shops sell their versions as well. But verrry rich.
I’m probably about just over an hour away from Gatwick, a little longer for Heathrow so not too bad at all. Have you been to the UK much?
no, but on my flight back to kuwait from the states I have a 12 hour lay over in london & thought maybe we could get a group of girls & plan a bloggers meet up =) –just send me an e-mail “jessiejoshua21@yahoo.com” and let me know your thoughts.
Oooh that sounds like such a good idea! I’d definitely be interested 🙂
I’ve never even heard of Christmas cake before! But that looks absolutely delicious. I’m gonna have to try it!
It’s one of my favourite Christmas treats and traditions! 🙂