Dundee Cake Recipe Mary Berry

DUNDEE CAKE

Steps:

• Combine raisins, currants, mixed peel, cherries, and orange rind. Dredge with 1/3 cup flour.
• Cream butter or margarine and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time until light. Combine 1 2/3 cups flour, baking powder, and ground almonds; fold into batter mixture. Mix in fruit. Spread in foil lined 8 x 3 inch round pan. If using a different size pan fill 3/4 full.
• Bake at 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) for about 1 1/2 hours, until an inserted wooden pick comes out clean. Remove cake from pan.
• Toast almonds in 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) oven until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Heat corn syrup, and brush over top surface of hot cake. Place almonds in whatever design you like. After cooling, cake will not be sticky.

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).

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.