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Delia's Classic Christmas Cake

''This is my original Classic Christmas Cake that has been made by thousands of people over the last 40 years and it really has been an absolute winner with everyone. Remember is to the butter from the fridge the night before, it really does need to be very, very soft.'' Delia. Makes: approximately 24 slices

Recipe adapted from Delia’s Happy Christmas published by Ebury Press 2009 copyright Delia Smith 2010

Pre-mix and soak:
450g currants
175g sultanas
175g raisins
50g chopped glacé cherries
50g mixed chopped candied peel
100ml (3 tbsp) brandy

225g plain flour
¼ teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
½ teaspoon ground mixed spice
225g soft dark brown sugar
50g chopped almonds
1 dessertspoon black treacle

225g very soft butter
5 medium eggs
Grated zest of 1 lemon
Grated zest of 1 orange
½ teaspoon salt
Armagnac or brandy, to feed the cake

100g whole blanched almonds (only if you don’t intend to ice the cake)

You will need a 20 cm round cake tin, greased and lined with a double thickness of baking parchment, or Bake-O-Glide (trademark), and a spot of oil. Tie a band of brown paper (or a double thickness of newspaper will do) round the outside of the tin with string for extra protection. To see how to line a cake tin with baking parchment , go to Delia Online.

You need to begin this cake the night before you want to bake it. All you do is weigh out the dried fruit and mixed peel, place it in a mixing bowl and mix in the brandy as evenly and thoroughly as possible. Cover the bowl with a clean tea cloth and leave the fruit aside to absorb the brandy for 12 hours.

Next day, preheat the oven to 140C, gas mark 1.

Measure out all the rest of the ingredients, ticking them off to make quite sure they're all there. The treacle will be easier to measure if you remove the lid and place the tin in a small pan of barely simmering water. Now begin the cake by sifting the flour, salt and spices into a large mixing bowl, lifting the sieve up high to give the flour a good airing. Next, in a separate large mixing bowl, whisk the butter and sugar together until it's light, pale and fluffy. Now beat the eggs in a separate bowl and add them to the creamed mixture a tablespoonful at a time; keep the whisk running until all the egg is incorporated. If you add the eggs slowly by degrees like this the mixture won't curdle. If it does, don't worry, any cake full of such beautiful things can't fail to taste good!

When all the egg has been added, fold in the flour and spices, using gentle, folding movements and not beating at all (this is to keep all that precious air in). Now fold in the fruit, peel, chopped nuts and treacle and finally the grated lemon and orange zests. Next, using a large kitchen spoon, transfer the cake mixture into the prepared tin, spread it out evenly with the back of a spoon and, if you don't intend to ice the cake, lightly drop the whole blanched almonds in circles or squares all over the surface. Finally cover the top of the cake with a double square of silicone paper with a 50p-size hole in the centre (this gives extra protection during the long slow cooking).

Bake the cake on the lowest shelf of the oven for 4½-4¾ hours. Sometimes it can take up to ½-¾ hour longer than this, but in any case don't look till at least 4 hours have passed. Cool the cake for 30 minutes in the tin, then remove it to a wire rack to finish cooling. When it's cold 'feed' it – make small holes in the top and base of the cake with a cocktail stick or small skewer, then spoon over a few teaspoons of brandy, wrap it in double silicone paper secured with an elastic band and either wrap again in foil or store in an airtight container. You can now feed it at odd intervals until you need to ice or eat it.