Fig and Date Xmas cake with a drop of whiskey.

This is a Christmas cake without citrus peel … because we don’t like it and it is full of dried fruit that you could change to your preferred taste.

The night before, or even a day before making this cake. Prepare 2 cups of raisins (Sunmaid is gluten free), 1 cup of dates finely chopped, 1 cup of dried figs finely chopped and 1/2 cup of frozen cherries. Pour 1/2 a cup of whiskey (Bushmill’s Irish whiskey is gluten free).

Ingredients:

1 cup (225g) butter

1 cup of (200g) sugar

4 eggs

1 Tbsp molasses

1 Tbspn honey

1 cup (225g) gluten free flour like Pamela’s or Bobs Red Mill.

½ tsp salt

1 rounded tsp baking powder

1 tsp mixed spice

¼ tsp ground ginger

¼ tsp grated nutmeg

¼ tsp ground cloves

Glacé cherries for Christmas colour

1/4 cup of whiskey after baking

Method:

Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C) Grease a 8″  cake tin and line it with parchment paper

Cream the sugar and butter until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time with a little flour, to stop mixture curdling. Add the molasses and honey and mix well.

Sift the flour, baking powder, spices and salt, into the fruit mixing well.

Fold the fruit mix into the egg and sugar, mixing well. Spoon into into the cake tin and bake for 3 hours. Make sure cake does not brown too much. If this happens it can be covered lightly with tin foil.

Once out of the oven and while still warm, prick holes in the top of the cake and pour the 1/4 of a cup of extra whiskey

Turn the cake over after a week and pour more whiskey, sherry, brandy or rum over. Wrap well and keep for another week. Turn cake over and repeat the whiskey pour. Seal in a plastic bag,wrapped in parchment paper. Let sit for a week. If it lasts until Christmas. Yum!