Here we go.. hopefully the first of many on the road to the big 'Project Wedding Cake'. I need to update you all on the latest for the wedding cake, so I'll do that in another post. But in the meantime...
My brother and his fiancée have requested that at least one of the tiers of their cake is to be fruit. Although the Bride-to-Be isn't a huge fan, they want to be able to save a tier for the christening of their first child. So to get in preparation and to get a dark fruit cake that they like, my mum has tasked me with a couple of birthday cakes during March for her friends. Plus this gives me chance to practice and practice my decorating skills as well.
The first cake is due only 3 weeks away, and as I've only just found out about the cake, I'm trying to get everything together as soon as possible, especially as we are starting with a fruit cake. What I really want to do is walk through the cake in steps as I work through the recipe, and then at the end I'll post everything up together. I hope that this is ok with you all?
So then, the recipe I am going to use is my late Granny's; the one that adorned our Christmas Dinner table every year. I've tweaked it a little as I don't like nuts or prunes, but I hope that it will all go to plan. It would be nice to use this recipe for the wedding as it has a family history. Anyway, first things first, the fruit...
What You'l Need
150g Mixed Peel
150g Glacé Cherries
250g Dried Apricots - I like the ones that aren't completely dried out and are still soft and plump
250g Californian Raisins
500g Sultanas
1 Large Orange
100ml Courvoisier VS Cognac - I was recommended Stones Ginger Wine by a colleague today so I'm giving that a go this time round
What You'll Need to Do
In a clean, dry bowl add the mixed peel, raisins and sultanas
Roughly quarter the dried apricots
Halve the glacé cherries
Add the glacé cherries and apricots to the other fruit in the bowl and mix together well
Grate the zest of the orange, being careful not to go through to the bitter white pith and mix into the fruit
Juice the orange and pour over the mixed fruit and orange zest, mix the juice and fruit together
Pour over your chosen alcohol and mix well with the fruit, ensuring that as much of the fruit is coated with the liquid as possible
If you do not wish to use alcohol, substitute the alcohol with the same amount of fresh orange juice
Cover the fruit and left to stand overnight, ready for the next part
Stay tuned for Part II