Any-occasion cake

Ingredients

• 450 g fruit mixed dried
• 100 g raisin 
• 100 g glacé cherries 
• 1  lemon zest grated
• 1  orange zest grated
• 150 ml cooking sherry 
• 175 g brown sugar soft
• 100 g flour plain
• 50 g self-raising flour 
• 50 g ground almonds 
• 1 tsp spice mixed
• 175 g butter softened
• 3  eggs 

Equipment

• bowl
• oven
• wire rack
• cake form
• skewers

Directions

1. Tip the fruits and zests into a bowl, pour over the sherry and leave to marinate overnight. Grease and line the bottom and sides of a deep 20cm cake tin with a double layer of baking parchment.
2. Heat oven to 140C/fan 120C/gas
3. Mix all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl, together with the butter and eggs. If the mixture starts to curdle you can add a little more plain flour. Stir in the fruit, discarding any sherry that has not been absorbed, then spoon the mixture into the tin. Smooth the surface and make a small dent in the middle.
4. Bake in the centre of the oven for 2 hrs until the cake is dark golden brown in colour; an inserted skewer should come out clean. If the top of the cake browns too quickly, cover it with a layer of baking parchment. Leave it in the tin for about 10 mins before turning it out onto a wire rack, then leave it to cool.
5. Serve plain or with the icing or decoration of your choice.