Olga Walker's light fruit cake

cherries fruit cake
Average rating: 3 out of 5 star rating

You can wrap up this tasty fruit cake and store it for 10 days, but you'll probably want to eat it all at once!

  • Cooking time: 1 hr 40 mins

    (plus 1 hour cooling time)

  • Makes: 1

  • Skill level: Bit of effort

  • Costs: Cheap as chips

  • Child friendly
  • Make in advance

Ingredients

If you wrap this cake in brown paper and foil and store it in a cake tin, it will last for a week to 10 days.

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  • Handful of dried dates, chopped
  • 350g (12oz) mixed dried fruit
  • 100g (4oz) demerara sugar
  • 100g (4oz) butter or margarine
  • 1 egg
  • 225g (8oz) self-raising flour
  • 50g (2oz) unwashed glacé cherries
  • 1/2tsp mixed spice

Method

  1. Put the dates and mixed fruit in a large pan with the sugar, butter and 150ml (1/4 pint) water. Put the pan on a gentle heat and slowly melt the butter and sugar. Bring the mixture to the boil and simmer for 20 mins.
  2. Set the fruit to one side to cool completely (about 1 to 2 hours, or overnight if you like).
  3. Line the base and sides of an 18cm (7in) square cake tin (loose-bottomed, if you've got one) with baking paper.
  4. Break the egg into the fruit pan and stir. Fold in the flour, cherries and mixed spice.
  5. Pour the mixture into the cake tin, sprinkle with extra sugar and bake at 150°C, 300°F or gas 2, for 1 hour, 15 mins.
  6. When the cake is ready, let it cool in the tin for 10 mins, then turn out on to a wire rack to cool completely.

By Olga Walker, 62, Leeds

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Nutritional information per portion

  • Calories 382(kcal)
  • Fat 12.0g
  • Saturates 7.0g
  • Sugars 48.0g
  • Salt 0.6g

This nutritional information is only a guide and is based on 2,000 calories per day. For more information on eating a healthy diet, please visit the Food Standards Agency website.

Guideline Daily Amount for 2,000 calories per day are: 70g fat, 20g saturated fat, 90g sugar, 6g salt.

http://www.goodtoknow.co.uk/food/130921/Olga-Walker-s-light-fruit-cake