Roasted Almond, Citrus and Whisky Christmas Cake

Equipment: Grease an 18cm springform cake tin and line the base with baking paper. Cut a 60cm-long piece of baking paper and fold it into thirds lengthways. Use this three-layered paper to line the sides of the greased tin.

Preheat the oven to 150°C.

Place all the ingredients down to and including the whisky, in a large bowl and whisk together. The mixture will look a little curdled. Combine the ground almonds, flour, baking powder and salt then add to the fruit mix. Stir together then tip into the tin. If you’re not icing the cake, scatter the almonds over the top.

Bake for 80 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 30 minutes then remove and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 1 cake

Serving suggestions: Leave the cake plain and dust with icing sugar or top with Whisky Cream Cheese Icing (see right) and toasted almonds. We also topped it with Candied Citrus Peel; you can find the recipe on the dish website.

Cook's note: Jars of fruit mince can be found in the baking aisle at food stores and the roasted almonds, ground almonds, slivered almonds and cranberries can be found in the loose bins. 

Whisky Cream Cheese Icing: Beat together the butter and cream cheese until soft and pale. Add the icing sugar and beat to combine then mix through the whisky. Refrigerate until ready to use.