important recipes

Monday, November 30, 2009

the christmas cake

250 gr currants
250 gr sultanas
200 gr raisins
150 gr candied cherries
100 gr candied orange peel (mixed peel)
100 gr almonds (without skins if possible)
300 gr flour
pinch of salt
1 level tea spoon grated nut meg
1/2 level tea spoon mixed spice
1/2 level tea spoon cinnamon
300 gr butter
300 gr sugar
1 grated lemon rind
6 eggs
a little baking powder

put two table spoons of flour in a big bowl with all the fruit and mix it together

in another bowl put the remaining flour with the nutmeg the spices the pinch of salt, and 1/4 of a tea spoon of baking powder.

beat the butter in a different bowl. add sugar and mix thoroughly. add the lemon rind. add one at a time, each egg and beat it thoroughly.

fold in the mixed fruit and the flour mixture, half at a time, gently and thoroughly until well mixed.

grease the cake tin with greased paper.it should be double layered. so two bands in the inside of the cake tin. and two circular layers in the bottom on the tin. the bottom layers should overlap a little in order to avoid the mixture to run through.

turn into the prepared cake tin and smooth the top. protect the top of the cake with a piece of brown paper.

place in middle shelf. slow. (2) 4 hours max. try with a skewer to verify.

CONCERNING THE MARZIPAN and THE ICING

500 gr ground almonds
250 gr sugar
250gr icing sugar
1 large egg
lemon juice
sive icing sugar and mix with sugar and ground almonds.
add one large egg, with one tea spoon of lemon juice and 1/4 teaspoon of vanila essence. stir well to form a paste and knead thoroughly until smooth. watch out to not make it too liquid, it becomes then very sticky.
previously boil and cool one to two rounded spoons of apricot jam, brush top of cake with jam ( serves just as glue)
roll out sufficient almond paste to make a round a little bigger than the top of the cake.
place cake upside down on the top of the almond paste. with pallet knife press edges of almond paste in level with level of sides of cake. fill the cavities in order to make it flat.
sides. brush all around sides with jam, roll remainder or AP in a long strip that will go round the cake and cover side.
trim off uneven edges.
make sure its nice and even and well joined.
leave cake at least a day before icing.

FOR THE ICING
250gr icing sugar
1 egg white
1 tea spoon lemon juice
sive icing sugar in bowl add egg white and lemon to sugar, and beat with electric beater until icing mix is very white and smooth. depending on size of the egg white, you might need a second one. it's good if the paste is nice and relatively soft.
cover bowl with a cloth rang out in cold water to prevent a skin forming.
keep covered only removing to lift out some of the icing and covering again immediately.

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