This one is foolproof and as long as you keep the weights the same you can muck about with the dried fruit content eg miss out mixed peel if you don't like it and stick more sultanas in or whatever. I have just made it for the 5th year running. You need about 4 sep bowls - one for flour, one for eggs/treacle, one for fruit and one for beating the butter. That's the only faff. I also find with my oven it needs about half an hour less time so start sticking the skewer in a bit early.
10oz/275g plain flour
1 tsp mixed spice
8oz/225g butter
8oz/225g soft brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 tbsp black treacle
1 tbsp grated lemon rind
8oz/225g sultanas
8oz/225g currants
8oz/225g seedless raisins
4oz/100g candied peel, finely chopped
4oz/100g glace cherries, halved
2oz/50g ground almonds
4fl oz/125ml brandy
8"/20cm cake tin, 3"/7.5cm deep - well greased and lined
Oven temp: Cool 150C/300F/Gas Mark 2, then 140C/275F/Gas Mark 1
Sift together the flour, salt and mixed spice, and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until very light and fluffy. In another bowl, lightly beat together the eggs, treacle and lemon rind. Gradually beat the egg mixture into the butter and sugar, adding a little flour with the last few additions of egg to prevent the mixture separating.
Sift a few tablespoons of flour over the fruit, candied peel and almonds, and toss all together.
Fold the remaining sifted flour into the creamed mixture, then the fruit and nuts, and lastly the brandy. Mix all these very thoroughly together.
Turn the mixture into the prepared tin. Make a shallow depression in the centre of the cake so it will be level when cooked.
Bake in a preheated cool oven for 1hr 30, then lower the heat and continue baking for another 2 hrs 30. Test with a skewer - when it comes out clean the cake is done.
Cool the cake in the tin for 24 hours before taking off the paper. You can 'feed' the cake with more brandy at this stage before storing it in an airtight tin. If baked well ahead of Christmas it can be 'fed' again and returned to the tin until needed for decorating.