Christmas is just around the corner and things pace up, as more fingers are dipped in the batter bowl, cherries are stolen off the shelf-top, eggs are cracked against table tops, ants claim territory over the sugar, and an avalanche of flour comes crashing down. So, what does it take to bake the perfect Christmas cake?
“It’s mostly about the quality of the ingredients”, says Sita Goonetilleke, owner of Sits cakes and Desserts. “I personally make sure that I taste the ingredients before I buy it”
Sita tells us that being fuzzy about the ingredients is not a bad thing at all.
You should have one pound of the usual ingredients, such as flour, sugar and butter, along with the four very important spices (“You can’t miss any of these”, says Sita) which are cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and nutmeg. The dried fruit should include chow-chow, ginger preserve, Sultanas, orange peel, cherries, raisins and cashew nuts. Other than the ginger preserve and cashew nuts everything else is imported, Sita mentions, insisting once again on the quality of the ingredients.
Tip 1 – Choose the best of ingredients, without compromise.
So it all begins with the cutting of dried fruits into sizeable pieces. May I repeat the word, sizeable. “Usually we tend to chop the fruits into really fine pieces, and that is not a good thing,” Sita adds. Really fine pieces only make the cake stodgy, or as Sita would put it – “Mushy”.
Tip 2 - It is always better not to finely chop the fruit, rather leave it chunky.
“The recipe is there for a reason, and you should follow it properly,” says Sita. She regards her recipe (which has been handed down from her grand-aunt) as the holy grail, and it is a well-kept secret. Sita tells us that everybody should consider the recipe sacred and stick to it.
Tip 3 – Follow the recipe, to the dot.
The ideal baking time is 1.5 – 2 hours, but it depends on the size of the batter. “Be very aware of the size of the cake tin and how you make it”, mentions Sita. She tells us that the process of making the tin is as important as making the cake.
Tip 4 – Have an idea of the size of the final output, and give prominence to making the cake tin.
“Please don’t substitute any fruit with dates, it ruins the whole cake”, Sita affirms, “Dates make the cake dry and bleaks out the texture”. That’s that.
Tip 5 – No dates please.
Likewise, No margarine please!
Tip 6 – Only use butter. Nothing else.
Sita tells us that she marinates the dried fruits for about a month, and the process begins a long time before December. The perfect cake cannot be made in a day.
Tip 7 – Marinate the dried fruits for a lengthy period.
Sita tells us that the Sri Lankan version of the Christmas cake is probably the tastiest out there since most of the Westerners use some sort of a secret ingredient, instead of essence that only results in making the cake stodgy and dense. (Thank god they kept it a secret). Sita says that although it’s the way they prefer it, us Sri Lankans are used to a much lighter and moist cake.
Tip 8 – No need of the complicated stuff, stick to good old rose, almond and vanilla essence.
“Since this type of cake does not rise, you can open the oven and check on it at anytime”, Sita mentions.
Tip 9 – Make the most of it, do not leave the cake unattended (No, you don’t have to deploy the ‘it-might-run-away’ type of security. Just keep an eye on it at regular intervals)
Finally, (No it’s not going to be something like ‘bake it with love’, or ‘have fun while baking, that’s the most important part’ and the list goes on) – Plan well ahead. “You wouldn’t want to bake the cake on a really busy day”, Sita adds, “Specially if you have relatives coming over”. A good cake needs undivided attention.
Tip 10 – Do not rush things. Take time to bake your cake.
“Christmas cakes are probably the best cakes and the easiest to make, You can never go wrong”, Sita mentions, and so we hope that the finger-dipped batters and ant-infested sugar, would eventually end up as the most beautiful thing you’ve ever baked in your life – the perfect Christmas cake. |
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