Mini Christmas Cakes

These Christmas cakes are full of fruit and made in the AGA Portmeirion Yorkshire Pudding Tray means fruit cake lovers can have one each.  Starting off cooking the cakes in the Baking Oven means they will be peaked, whereas cooking the total time in the Simmering Oven will produce flatter cakes.

Makes 6

You will need:

• 1 x AGA Portmeirion Yorkshire Pudding Tray
• 6g butter for greasing

Ingredients:

• 115g (4 oz) plain flour
• ½ tsp mixed spice
• ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• ¼ tsp cinnamon
• 115g (4 oz) butter
• 115g (4 oz) Muscovado sugar
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 50g (1¾ oz) ground almonds
• 315g (11 oz) mixed fruit, currants, sultanas and raisins
• 55g (2 oz) mixed chopped peel
• 25g (1 oz) crystallised pineapple, chopped
• 25g (1 oz) dried cranberries
• 40g (1½ oz) dried apricots, chopped
• 40g (1¾ oz) crystallised papaya pieces, chopped
• 85g (3 oz) glacé cherries cut into quarters
• 2 tbsp brandy

For the Decoration:

• Glacé fruits

Method:

Place a gram of butter into each hole of the tray, put on the floor of the Simmering Oven for 3 minutes to melt.  Remove from the oven and brush the butter around each cavity.  Put to one side whilst you make the cake mixture.

Sieve the flour and the spices together.  Cream the butter and sugar well together until light and fluffy.  Gradually beat in the eggs, which should be at room temperature, adding a tablespoon of flour to prevent curdling towards the end.  Fold in the remaining flour, ground almonds and fruit until thoroughly mixed.  Equally divide the mixture between the 6 cavities.

3, 4 and 5 oven AGA:  Slide the tray onto the lowest set of runners in the Baking Oven and cook for about 30-40 minutes until the cakes have peaked.  Then transfer to the Simmering Oven to finish cooking, about 1½-2 hours.

Alternatively for 2 oven and all AGA cookers:  Hang the tray on the centre oven runners in the Simmering Oven and cook for about 2-3 hours.

To test if the cakes are cooked insert a skewer into the centre of a cake if it comes out clean, it is cooked.  (Or ‘listen’ - if the cakes have stopped 'singing' it is an indication of doneness).

Leave in the tray for 30 minutes and then turn onto a wire rack to cool.  Prick the surface of the cakes with a skewer and spoon the brandy over.  Wrap in foil until required.

Decorate with glacé fruits or simply a sprig of holly.

Conventional cooking:  Pre-heat the oven to 180ºC, fan oven 160ºC, Gas Mark 4 and cook for 30 minutes then turn the oven down to 120ºC, fan oven 100ºC, Gas Mark 1 until cooked through, about 1-1½ hours.

By Dawn Roads