The Dundee Cake is a light fruit cake, believed to have been originally made and commercialized by Keiller’s, a Scottish marmalade company, in the nineteenth century. A cross between the dense and rich Christmas cake and light and airy sponge cake, it can take up to two hours to bake which results in a thick, almost crisp, crust. This recipe, from Frugal Feeding, stays true to tradition and is topped with concentric circles of blanched almonds. It makes a wonderful “last-minute” cake for special occasions as it does not require any frosting or fancy decorations. Just what I need to make mum happy on this Mother’s Day! My best wishes to all the mothers of the world who are real-life superheroes, guiding us towards a brighter future and showering us with unconditional love, understanding and patience.

DUNDEE CAKE

Ingredients:

150g butter, softened

150g caster sugar

3 eggs, room temperature

225g all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 tablespoon whole milk

100g almonds, blanched

125g currants

125g sultanas

50g mixed peel

Zest of 1 orange

Zest of 1 lemon

Method:

  • Grease and line an 8-inch cake tin with parchment paper. Cream together the butter and the sugar.

  • Whisk the eggs in a bowl and incorporate it little by little into the butter mixture with a hand whisk.

  • Sift in the flour and baking powder and fold gently until uniform. Roughly chop 60g of the almonds.

  • Pop them, along with fruit, peel and zest into the cake batter. Fold, adding milk if it feels a little stiff.

  • The batter should be of a good dropping consistency. Spread the batter into the prepared 8-inch tin.

  • Flatten the surface and arrange the whole blanched almonds on top of the cake in concentric circles.

  • Bake at 150C for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until browned and firm and springy to the touch. Leave it to cool.

  • When cake cools to room temperature, turn it out on a serving plate and cut into wedges. Serves 10.

Happy Mother’s Day

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