Christmas Cake

Method

1. The night before baking, put 150 g mixed dried fruit and 20 g halved glacé cherries in a bowl with the finely grated zest of 0.5 orange and 1 tbsp brandy. Stir well, cover with a plate and leave at room temperature for at least 8 hours, or up to 24, stirring once if you pass by — the fruit should be plump and the liquid almost all absorbed.
2. Heat the oven to 140C (120C fan). Line the base and sides of a 10 cm round deep cake tin with a double thickness of baking parchment, standing the paper 3 cm above the rim, and tie a band of brown paper round the outside — the slow, insulated bake is what keeps a fruit cake moist rather than crusted.
3. In a bowl, cream 25 g softened butter with 25 g dark brown sugar for 3-4 minutes with a wooden spoon or hand whisk until pale and fluffy. Beat in the beaten egg a little at a time, adding 1 tsp black treacle with the last of it; if it looks like curdling, add a spoonful of the flour.
4. Sift 35 g plain flour over the batter with 0.75 tsp mixed spice and a pinch of salt, add 15 g ground almonds and fold in gently with a large metal spoon. Fold in the soaked fruit along with every drop of its liquid; the mixture should drop reluctantly from the spoon.