Christmas Preparations - Christmas Cake

Have you made yours? If you make it well in advance it means it can have a trickle of extra alcohol beverage each week right up until you decorate it
Heres the recipe I used

Christmas Cake

2 x bags of mixed fruit
7 1/2 oz plain flour
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground mace
6oz margarine
6oz soft brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 tbsp brandy ***
black treacle *optional*

Line an 8inch round tin with greaseproof paper (brown paper or newspaper and string wrapped around the outside of the tin and underneath)
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy
Beat in the eggs and a little flour
Fold in the rest of the flour, cinnamon and mace
(you can add a little black treacle at this point to darken the cake)
Add all the fruit and mix in well

Put the cake mix carefully into the tin, hollow out the middle with a spoon
Bake at a low temperature of 150c for 3 hours
Check after 1 1/2 hours, if browning too quick cover with double layor of greaseproof paper
Continue with the cooking time but keep checking on its progress
Once cooked remove from oven and leave to cool before turning onto a wire rackOnce cooled wrap in layers of greaseproof paper (and tin foil on the outside) and pour over some brandy, cover with the greaseproof paper and place in a tin.
Continue to pour brandy over cake once a week until christmas - you'll get one yummy christmas cake to serve up to family and friends

Now in all honesty, I think I burnt the top a little but i'll be levelling it off so i'm sure it doesnt matter

I'll be back at a later date with how I decorate mine x