Fruit

This cake also can be made up to 6 months ahead. Turn it into an emergency Christmas pudding by brushing with liqueur, heating in the microwave and serving with ice-cream or custard. Note

You need two pomegranates to give a total of 1 cup of seeds. To remove the seeds, cut the pomegranate in half, hit the outside hard with a large spoon. Most of the seeds will fall out of a ripe pomegranate. Or, dig the seeds out of the fruit with a teaspoon. If you use […]

An Italian lemon-flavoured liqueur, limoncello was originally made from the juice and peel of lemons grown along the coast of Amalfi. You can substitute it in this recipe, if you wish, with any lemon-flavoured liqueur or with an orange-flavoured one such as Cointreau. You need approximately five lemons for this recipe. Note

This cake is very moist, due to the proportion of fruit to flour, which gives it a similar texture to Christmas pudding. Great as a family dessert with custard or, traditionally, for more special occasions such as 21st birthdays and weddings. Rum, sherry or your favourite liqueur can be substituted for the brandy. The fruit […]

Cook a double or triple batch of these quinces and store them in their syrup in the fridge. Serve with porridge or muesli for breakfast. Note

For those who prefer a light fruit cake, this is ideal. Keep the cake for 3 to 4 days before cutting, then cut with a sharp serrated or electric knife to cut cleanly through the almonds. Note

Serve with a bowl of combined yoghurt and coarsely chopped fresh coriander, if desired. Note

You can turn this into an ‘eggless processor fruit cake’, if you like. Omit the eggs, and increase the golden syrup by 1 tablespoon to ⅓ cup (155g). The cake doesn’t keep quite as well without eggs, about 5 days, but will freeze for 3 months. Note

Ginger wine, a beverage that is 14% alcohol by volume, has the piquant taste of fresh ginger.You can substitute it with dry (white) vermouth, if you prefer. Any type or combination of glace fruit can be used in this recipe. Note

You need 1 large (230g) overripe banana to get the amount of mashed banana required for this recipe. Note