I have just finished decorating the Christmas cake, and seeing as I am pretty proud of how it turned out, I thought I would share....



I know it isn't perfect, I know some of the holly leaves are wonky and not properly lined up, but it does look pretty good in real life (you can't see the wonky holly when you look at it - strange that!)...

I am also glad I have got this done - one more thing to cross off the "to do" list!

Beautiful cake! Is that fondant? If it is, do you make it or buy it?

Well...if you made a present of it to me, it would last me the rest of my life. Can't stand the stuff!

Would bring it out every year for people to just look at....much like the xmas tree....

P.S.....very pretty....

Lovely

Mine is a bought from Superstore Scottish fruit cake (little it is), I did look at marzipan today, then I looked at the icing, then I put them both back on the shelf, I'm the only one that likes fruit cake in my home (I dunno what's wrong with the other two) and somehow the extra effort just for me didn't seem worth it - even it it was all shop bought and assembled at home

It is fondant - I bought the fondant (and the marzipan underneath), but I coloured the green and red myself (pain in the ass that that is!) and then made the holly and the berries.

It isn't looking quite so beautiful now though - one of the kids dropped the phone on it last night and there is a dent in the top grrrrr

Here is a favourite recipe of mine

Brandy Christmas cake

Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup water
1 tsp. salt
1 cup brown sugar
Lemon juice
4 large eggs (room temperature)
Nuts (your choice)
1 bottle brandy
2 cups dried fruit

Directions:

• Sample brandy to check quality; get a large bowl;
  
• Check brandy again to be sure it is of the highest quality.
  
• Repeat.
  
• Turn on the electric mixer. Beat one cup of butter in a large fluffy bowl.
  
• Add 1 teaspoon of sugar. Beat again.
  
• At this point, it is best to make sure the brandy is still OK; Try another cup just in case.
  
• Turn off the mixerer thingy.
  
• Break 2 eegs and add to the bowl and chuck iin the cup of dried fruit.
  
• Pick the fruit up off the floor.
  
• Mix on the turner.
  
• If the fried druit getas stuck in the beaterers, just pry it loose with a drewscriver.
  
• Sample the brandy to test for tonsisticity.
  
• Next, sift 2 cups of salt, or something.
  
• Check the brandy. Now shift the lemon juice and strain your nuts.
  
• Add one table. Add a spoon of sugar, or somefink. Whatever you can find.
  
• Greash the oven.
  
• Turn the cake tin 360 degrees and try not to fall over.
  
• Don't forget to beat off the turner.
  
• Finally, throw the bowl through the window.
  
• Finish the brandy and wipe the counter with the cat.
  

Cherry Christmas!

Nice. I like christmas cake.

I made ours in November and have been pouring brandy on it every few days since. Well until it got iced; which took 1Kg of icing sugar. It is quite a large cake considering there are only two of us.

It looks just like my mum used to make.

She stopped doing them and we used to get one from M&S.

I'm making do with Stollen this year.

Looks lovely. We've already tucked into ours

We always used to steal ours but the wife made one this year...

That looks very nice and very tasty. I thought about buying one from our local English shop but they all looked a bit naffy and over priced. I think I'll try and make one next year.

Great Cake Chookie! Mine is in the 'needs icing stage' at the mo, but then I have just made 4 gingerbread houses and had a ton of kids here today sticking all the good stuff on. I'm slowly turning into my mum who always left the christmas cakes till the last minute

Next year I'm thinking of making a Tunis Cake instead of the traditional fruit cake. A friend of mine has mentioned it a couple of times in her facebook status and it looks yummy. Never heard of it before I googled it. Supposed to be traditional. Anyone else heard of it? or had them for Christmas? Could be something my kids might even eat!

Merry Christmas!

That is pretty much what I did except that I made mine in October... it has the best part of the bottle of brandy inside it now, and Mr Chookie and I will be the only ones who eat it (the kids eat the icing and marzipan, don't like the cake - which is a good thing because neither Mr Chookie or I like the icing and marzipan...)

My mum always made a Christmas Cake every year. She didn't like fondant so always made Royal icing. However, she didn't know how to get it all smooth on the cake so every cake was a "snow scene theme" complete with plastic reindeer on top! I used to make Christmas cakes the first few years we were married but gave up when I realised none of us actually liked fruit cake (or was it just my baking?)

Without Royal icing it's not a real Christmas cake..