[Mrs Bee]

Thank you for the explanation Granny.

It is sureal DD when you don't understand the history of the banned word.
I thought it was a strange pagan ritual practised by the mods.

I couldn't understand why I kept getting a black line through the word. Thought there was something wrong with my computer or a strange kind of censorship was occuring.

As for pagan festivals Grannie, in our house we follow the pagan wheel of the year. Winter Solstice hogroast and bonfire in the garden but we also have the mincepies and Christmas cake too. Why waste a good recipe.

And we know about the letter sent from Pope Gregory to Augustine on how to convert the Anglo Saxon Pagans.  

And just so I don't go completely off topic and get myself deleted, I still make my 12th night/Christmas cake in Jan after the last slice of the previous cake has been eaten.

[Goldfinger]

My mum started making hers in May,

By June she'd made 9!   

Guess they must be good, people always ask (order  ) theirs by boxing day. 

[chrissie B]

ok i see now but its unnavoidable in the shops
apoligies
chrissie b

[GrannieAnnie]

See, even my 'C' word got crossed out! lol

I don't think I could make my cake in January Mrs B.  I'd keep forgetting to oil it with the brandy! lol

Bet it tastes wonderful though with all that brandy in it!  hic! lol

Chrissie, I think that is what started it all off, because some people are still on their summer holidays, and the shops are getting cards and decorations in already.

We still have Halloween and November 5th to come yet!  It was the Americans who started us on the commercial halloween stuff like trick or treat.  Before then it was just telling ghost stories and black cats and witches!

We don't get trick or treaters here.  Brian frightened the local kids off the first November after we moved here and we haven't seen any of them since!   

[shokkyy]

I have to admit I've never made one. You've made me feel like having a go now. Can anyone point me at a foolproof recipe?

[hamstergbert]

......It was the Americans who started us on the commercial halloween stuff like trick or treat.......

I understand that they only got it because the Irish brought it with 'em!

[mumofstig]

shokky you could try this one..............
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=86753.msg962235#msg962235

 

this thread lists a few 'proper' ones
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=85768.msg953685#msg953685

[Debz]

My fruit is in to soak at the moment and has been for a week.  The recipe I follow has the fruit soaking in booze for 6 weeks before baking.  It was one I tried last year for the first time and my b-i-l loved it.   He is the biggest cake eater I know and is quite particular about his festive cakes.  I soak my fruit in malt whisky because that is preferred drink.

[GrannieAnnie]

......It was the Americans who started us on the commercial halloween stuff like trick or treat.......

I understand that they only got it because the Irish brought it with 'em!

Is that right?  Didn't know that!

[hamstergbert]

So it is claimed!

http://www.ireland-information.com/articles/irishhalloweentraditions.htm

(the switch from turnip lanterns to pumpkin lanterns was however an American introduction which was exported back to Europe)

[Mrs Bee]

I have to admit I've never made one. You've made me feel like having a go now. Can anyone point me at a foolproof recipe?

This is the one I make year after year even if I make 2 to try out a new recipe.
175g glace cherries
175 large lexia raisins
75g currants
150g sultanas
50g mixed peel
100 ml brandy or perhaps a little more.... feel free to use rum or whisky what ever you prefer.
125 g brazil nuts
225 unsalted butter. must be butter not marg it makes all the difference
rind of one lemon
225g light soft muscovado sugar
4 eggs
2 tabs black treacle
225g plain flour
1tsp mixed spice
50g ground almonds.
20 cm round cake tin greased and lined with baking parchment.

SOak the fruit in 5 tabs booze over night.

Then continue as normal. Cream butter and sugar till really light and fluffy and then whack all the other ingredients together.
 
Before baking the cake put a folded up newspaper on a baking tray and make a thick collar of newpaper aroung the outside of the tin.
bake for at 150C for about 3-3 and 1/3 hours or until a fine skewer comes out of the cake clean.
Check the cake every hour and if it is browning too much cover the top with several layers of brown paper or greaseproof paper


Leave the cake to cool and then pierce all over with the skewer and drizzle with the remainng booze. Wrap first in greaseproof paper and then in tin foil and put in the cake tin. Feed once a week with an extra tab of the chosen booze.

I have iced the cakes in the past but these days I put a collar of white marzipan around the side and fill the top with crystalised fruit and nuts covered in a apricot jam glaze mixed with a little more of the chosen booze.... well it is the winter solstice/Christmas


edit: just because the norty word is the last one in the post doesn't mean we can't see it 

[hamstergbert]

Another easy one - uses the boiling method so pretty simple and done in a loaf tin:

   140g unsalted butter cut into cubes
   175g light muscovado sugar
   180ml orange juice
   3 tbs brandy (if missing this out simply add further 50 ml orange juice)
   200g dried apricots quartered
   200g glacé cherries, halved or quartered, depends how much you can be bothered
   100g raisins
   50g  mixed peel
   300g plain flour
   2 tsp baking powder
   2 tsp mixed spice (sometimes used to mix in half tsp fresh ground nutmeg too)
   50g toasted flaked almonds
   2 large or medium eggs lightly beaten


 Preheat the oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 21⁄2. Butter and line the base and sides of a 1.5 litre loaf tin with greaseproof or baking parchment.

Put the butter, sugar, orange juice, dried fruits and peel into a large pan and bring slowly to the boil, stirring to melt the butter. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, then leave to cool for 10 minutes.  Stir in the brandy thoroughly and leave for another ten minutes to cool further.

Sift the flour, baking powder and spice into the pan, add the almonds and eggs and stir all the ingredients together with a wooden spoon.
Spoon the mixture into the tin and smooth the top with the back of the spoon.
Bake for 11⁄4-11⁄2 hours until the cake is golden brown and it springs back when pressed lightly. Insert a fine skewer at the centre of the cake; if it comes out clean with just a few crumbs sticking to it, the cake is cooked. Leave to cool for 15 minutes in the tin, then turn out on to a wire rack, remove the paper and leave to cool completely.

Ice or not, your call.
Lovely and moist cake and was ever pretty popular.   Options include chopping 150 gm marzipan into pea sized chunks.  When putting the mixture into the tin, put in half, sprinkle the marzipan 'peas' over the top and then cover with the rest of the gunge.  Adds a certain luxurious extra richness to it - plus we always used to like almond flavours!

[shokkyy]

Thanks for all the recipes, I'll have a look through and see which one looks easiest. I don't want to do anything too big because my other half won't eat cakes so it'll basically be me scoffing the whole lot. Strangely, I love marzipan, which is an almond taste, yet I'm not that keen on nuts in cakes. But I'm very partial to cakes with a strong taste of alcohol

[GrannieAnnie]

The ones like hamstergbert has put on here where you boil the fruit in the liquid first are wonderful for first timers Shokky.   It keeps the cake soooooo moist.

I've got 2 so called 'boiled' cake recipes and they are lovely!   Try it!  You can always make half the mixture, or cut the cake in half before marzipanning it and freeze it for your birthday!

[hamstergbert]

... I love marzipan, which is an almond taste, yet I'm not that keen on nuts in cakes....

If you wish to avoid the almonds being recognisably 'nuts' you could replace the 50g toasted almonds with 30gm ground almonds plus a tsp of almond extract/essence (NOT 'flavouring') If you do, add the almond essence at the same point as the brandy and the ground almonds at the point where the toasted almonds would have gone in.

It really is an easy and 'forgiving' cake to make and if you wish, as GrannieAnnie says, you can cut in two and freeze half (wrapped in foil) for months.