The recipe calls for a deep 20" cake tin. I don't own one of these, but I do have two 20" shallow sandwich tins, which after much deliberation I decided would have to do (well, one of them would have to do anyway).
To compensate, I made sure that I lined the sides of the tin with an extra tall layer of baking parchment, so if the cake mixture rose too much, hopefully the parchment would contain it and hold it in place!
This is an all in one recipe, which means that you put all of the ingredients into a bowl and mix them together until a batter is formed. The recipe doesn't say to do this but I assumed that you were meant to mix together the cake ingredients first (flour, light muscovado sugar, butter and eggs) before adding the fruit and spices. This is what I did anyway and it worked a treat.
I was getting increasingly nervous as I added the various types of fruit to my batter, as my mixing bowl was getting fuller and fuller and my lined tin seemed to be shrinking before my eyes!
I needn't have worried. As instructed I placed approximately half of the cake and fruit mixture into the tin, before levelling and adding a layer of marzipan. I then added the rest of the cake mixture and levelled the top again before baking for 2 and a half hours!
I was very pleased with the finished baked fruit cake, and thought it looked good enough to eat as it was, but I pressed on with the decoration using the rest of the marzipan!
I put the apricot jam on to warm in a pan while I rolled out the second disc of marzipan and weighed out the marzipan balls. I got a bit carried away with making sure each ball weighed exactly 14g (yes, I know, I need to get a life!) and completely forgot about the jam which was warming merrily away in the pan. I managed to remove it from the heat just befor it started to burn!
The jam was spread on top of the cake before the disc of marzipan was gently placed on top. This layer of jam apparently helps the marzipan to stick to the cake.
The top of the marzipan was then scored using a sharp knife, brushed lightly with beaten egg and the 11 balls (representing the 11 apostles less Judas) were placed on top. I was impressed with how well they stuck to the cake, I had visions of them simply rolling off!
Finally, the whole cake was placed under a hot grill to brown. I wished I had thought about putting the cake onto a baking tray before I had decorated it, as it was still on the wire rack, but luckily I managed to transfer it onto a tray without any disasters. Phew!!
I was pleased overall with how the cake turned out. I was a bit cross that I hadn't allowed some overlap for the top layer of marzipan on top of the cake, as my attempts to crimp the edges were pretty dismal, given that there wasn't enough marzipan to work with! I guess this sort of thing comes from practice and experience.
Taste wise, the cake was delicious. I have to admit that I did feel a little sick from the marzipan after eating a small slice of this cake, but I think this has more to do with me eating all the offcuts that were left over from cutting around the marzipan discs and the marzipan balls!
Husband was pleased with the cake too. The boys haven't had the chance to try it yet but I'm sure they soon will, that is, if they can manage to fit it in around the chocolate easter eggs, fish and chips and hot cross buns!
Happy Easter everybody!
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