James Martin Dundee Cake Recipes

DUNDEE CAKE

Steps:

• Put the almonds into a small bowl and pour over boiling water to just cover. Leave for 5 mins then drain in a sieve and leave to dry.
• Preheat the oven to 180C/160 C fan/Gas Mark 4. Line a deep loose-based 20cm cake tin with baking parchment.
• Put the butter in a large bowl and beat well until soft. Add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Stir in the orange zest and apricot jam.
• Sieve together the flour and baking powder. Add the eggs to the creamed butter and sugar, a little at a time, beating well between each addition. If the mixture starts to curdle, stir in a little flour.
• Add the remaining flour and ground almonds and mix well. Mix in the milk and then add the dried fruit and cherries and mix gently together.
• Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and spread level using the back of a spoon. Arrange the whole almonds close together in neat circles on the top of the cake. Bake in the oven for 45 mins.
• Lower the oven temperature to 160C/140 C fan/Gas Mark 3 and cook for a further 60-80 minutes. Check the cake after 50 minutes by inserting a wooden or metal skewer into the cake. When it's done it should have just a few crumbs attached. Check every 10 minutes - it's important not to overcook this cake so the centre will be a little soft.
• When cooked, remove the cake briefly from the oven, put the milk and sugar into a small pan and heat gently until the sugar has dissolved. Brush over the top of the cake and return the cake to the oven for 2-3 mins. Remove and allow the cake to cool in the tin. When quite cold remove from the tin and wrap in foil and keep for at least 2 days before cutting.

TRADITIONAL DUNDEE CAKE

Steps:

• First of all sift the flour and baking powder into a roomy mixing bowl, lifting the sieve quite high to give the flour a good airing as it goes down. Then simply add the butter, caster sugar and eggs, and, using an electric hand whisk, combine them for about 1-2 minutes until you have a smooth dropping consistency. If it seems too dry, add a dessertspoon of milk. Next fold in all the other ingredients: currants, sultanas, cherries, mixed peel, ground almonds and orange and lemon zest. Now spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin, spreading it out evenly with the back of the spoon. Then, carefully, arrange the whole almonds in concentric circles over the top - but drop them on very lightly (if you press them down too hard they will disappear during the cooking). Place the cake near the centre of the oven and bake for 1¾ hours or until the centre is firm and springy to touch. Allow it to cool before taking it out of the tin. Dundee cake keeps very well in an airtight tin and tastes better if it's kept a few days before cutting.

MAKE & MATURE CHRISTMAS CAKE

Steps:

• Put 1kg mixed dried fruit, the zest and juice of 1 orange and 1 lemon, 150ml brandy or other alcohol, 250g softened butter and 200g light, soft brown sugar in a large pan set over a medium heat.
• Bring to the boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 5 mins. Tip the fruit mixture into a large bowl and leave to cool for 30 mins.
• Heat oven to 150C/130C fan/gas 2. Line a deep 20cm cake tin with a double layer of baking parchment, then wrap a double layer of newspaper around the outside - tie with string to secure.
• Add 175g plain flour, 100g ground almonds, ½ tsp baking powder, 2 tsp mixed spice, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, ¼ tsp ground cloves, 100g flaked almonds, 4 large eggs and 1 tsp vanilla extract to the fruit mixture and stir well, making sure there are no pockets of flour.
• Tip into your prepared tin, level the top with a spatula and bake in the centre of the oven for 2 hrs.
• Remove the cake from the oven, poke holes in it with a skewer and spoon over 2 tbsp of your chosen alcohol. Leave the cake to cool completely in the tin.
• To store, peel off the baking parchment, then wrap well in cling film. Feed the cake with 1-2 tbsp alcohol every fortnight, until you ice it.
• Don't feed the cake for the final week to give the surface a chance to dry before icing.

DUNDEE CAKE

Steps:

• The night before you plan to bake, put the dried fruit, cherries, candied peel, 3 tbsp of the whisky, the citrus zest and juices in a bowl and stir. Cover and leave overnight (see Tips).
• The next day, tie a folded sheet of newspaper into a band, wrap it around the outside of the prepared tin, then tie with string. Fold another few sheets into a thick pad and put on a baking sheet. This helps stop the cake browning too quickly, as it's in the oven for quite a long time.
• Heat the oven to 160°C/140°C fan/ gas 3. Cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Beat in the egg a little at a time, adding 1 tbsp flour after the second and third addition (see Tips). Sift over the remaining flour, baking powder and nutmeg, then fold in using a balloon whisk, adding a little milk if necessary to get a soft dropping consistency. Fold in the chopped and ground almonds, then the soaked fruit and any juices.
• Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and level the top with the back of a spoon. Decorate the cake with circles of blanched almonds, working from the outside edge inwards - press the almonds in very lightly as you don't want them to sink during baking.
• Put the cake tin on the folded paper on the baking tray and bake in the centre of the oven for about 2 hours or until a skewer pushed into the centre of the cake comes out clean (see Tips).
• Cool the cake in the tin for 30 minutes, then remove, put on a wire rack and leave until completely cold. Wrap the cake in a large sheet of compostable baking paper, then a layer of foil and store in an airtight tin (see Make Ahead).
• The day after baking, unwrap the cake, turn it over and prick the base with a fine skewer. Drizzle over 1 tbsp of the remaining whisky, then re-wrap it and return it to the tin. Repeat this feeding process twice, on day 3 and day 5 after baking. After that, either eat or wrap and leave to mature (see Make Ahead).