AIBU to think that, Italy, hands down, wins the international battle of the Christmas cake.

[KenDodd]

British, heavy fruit cake, just horrible.
Germany, stollen, not much better.
France, chocolate log, very nice but not very christmassy.
Italy, panettone, just delicious!

Christmas cake is the winner for me and feels more traditional as it's what we had growing up, my Granny was a good cook and made a lovely one iced with a nice royal icing snow scene. I also like all the others but sometimes Yule log can be too sweet for me, I like the icing that is made with a dark chocolate and cream ganache, not the sickly buttercream.
But the Italians do win when it comes to dessert, tiramisu is my favourite and I love it much more than Xmas pud or trifle.

I tried both of Morrisons strollers this year. The regular version was rubbish but the The Best version for £5 was quite nice.

There was a thread a week before Xmas and several posters named Wilkos as doing ace pannetones but they were clean out of all types when I went there.

Noooo! I'm a big fan of Italy (in fact recently became Italian ). Luckily, you do not have to be a fan of panettone for citizenship! My British-style Christmas cake with added apricots, on the other hand, was delicious!

Best Christmas cake hands down is Tunis Cake. Seems to be really underrated but it’s delicious

The only thing panettone is good for is regifting to people you forgot to buy for. I didn't realise anyone actually ate the damned stuff apart from post 26th when you lose the pass the panettone game and end up lumbered with one you reluctantly slather with better ingredients to make a bread and butter pudding.

Yule log on the other hand...yum.

Toasted panettone…delicious!

God no - you are completely mad and deluded, I’d seek help urgently.

The RIGHT order is the reverse:

British Christmas cake - delicious and rich, hefty enough to power you through days with relies. 🎂🔋

Stollen - pretty nice, but it’s like comparing vegemite to marmite, it’s a pale imitation, the true British Christmas cake will always win the war. 🔫

Yule Log - nice enough, but it’s Christmas - where are the currents, where is the booze?!?! You can have chocolate cake any time - it does not say Christmas!!! The French are such cheese 🧀 eaters they aren’t focusing.

Panettone - completely rubbish by any cake standards, dry and dull like chewing slightly sweetened cotton wool. It’s drier than the excellent Uk teatime staples of teacakes and hot cross buns, which given they need slathering in butter says it all. The only thing it’s good for is bread and butter pudding (🇬🇧✌️). It would be better for everyone Italy played to its main course strengths - those stupid zeppole things also need deporting.

I'm not really a fan of the classic Christmas cake, but this year I made a Caribbean Rum Cake (I believe this is sometime called Black Cake?)

Dried fruits are soaked in spiced rum for as long as you like, then processed into a chunky purée, before being stirred into the batter. You then stir through a 'browning', which is made from heated molasses syrup and spiced rum before baking the cake.

Once baked, you feed it with (yet more) spiced rum.

It was absolutely delicious.

I like stollen cake and Yule log, find panettone too dry and tasteless, British fruitcake is hideous. I hate mince pies and British gingerbread too. I like Dutch gingerbread and the Swedish ones you can find at IKEA.

That cake looks very interesting @BIWI and there are some other delicious looking cakes on that site too.

Pannetone is always too dry for my taste. I do have a soft spot for a good buche de Noel though.

Anything with marzipan is only fit for the bin.

I always wonder why people don't like Pannetone.

It's just struck me, reading this thread.
Perhaps many are trying to eat it as if it's cake?
But it's not, it's a sweet fruited and spiced bread.

It's delicious very very lightly toasted with butter.

@BIWI I had a tier of Caribbean Christmas cake for my wedding. Unbelievably delicious and reminds me of misspent summers of my youth.

YABU

Have you tried Spanish turron?

It was very delicious! Lovely and moist - not just from the rum, but I think by processing the fruit into a paste too.

Lovely idea to have it as a tier in your wedding cake. Did you have it iced as well?

What kind of Christmas cake do they have in the USA?

Galette des rois for Epiphany yummmmmmmm - going to vote French for this one

@AfterEightMintyCedric

Have to admit that this year's favourite has been mincemeat shortbread.

Recipe if possible please. Looks yummy!

Mmmm Galette des rois (except breaking my tooth on the crown when I was a teenager). I came back to the thread to add stollen and zimtsterne

Panettone is horrendous- dry.
Yuck.
Stollen not much better.
I don't like Christmas cake.
Chocolate Yule Log - all that chocolate buttercream - disgusting- it makes me gag.

@BabyofMine

What kind of Christmas cake do they have in the USA?

we had this when we lived in Texas, and DDad’s colleagues sent it to us for years after we came back to the UK

Tbh I'd happily scoff all of them but in order of preference I'd actually go

1. Rich iced fruit cake
2. stollen
3. Chocolate log
4. Panettone

The Portuguese one, bolo de rei (sp?) is the nicest imo.

Traditional xmas cake wins every time lovely moist fruit laden.
I'm gonna get me a slice right now