GRANDMA'S BEST CHRISTMAS CAKE

Steps:

• Warm margarine to room temperature Cream the sugars and margarine until smooth and creamy. Add one egg at a time mixing one tablespoon of the flour between each egg (this prevents curdling).
• Blanche Almonds if necessary then add ALL the ingredients EXCEPT the remaining flour stirring well then add the remaining flour folding in well.
• Line an 8-9 inch metal cake tin with greaseproof paper place the mixture in making a bit of a dip in the middle, by doing this the cake will come out more even.
• Cook in a slow oven 150c for approx 3 hours check with a satay stick through the centre to see if its cooked then tip out onto a cake rack to cool.
• I usually cook this in the early afternoon and leave overnight to cool completely, just to make sure that there is no heat in the centre as once you wrap it up if there is, it will sweat and can make the cake go mouldy.
• Wrap in two layers of Foil and keep in a cupboard. at the start of December prick the top of the cake lightly and dribble over a tot of Brandy, reseal and turn over two weeks later.
• Mums idea:.
• Line the tin as usual but also wrap brown paper around the outside tying it tightly with some string leaving the level of the paper higher than the cake so if necessary you can put some paper over the top to stop it browning too much toward the end of cooking.
• Cook this cake late October or Early November.