Christmas Cake (2)

Ingredients

• 11/2 lb Flour
• 1lb Butter
• 12 ozs moist sugar
• 3 lbs Currants
• 1/2 lb Citrus peel
• 1/2 lb Lemon peel
• 6 Eggs
• 3 tbsp Brandy
• 2 tsp Vinegar
• 1 tsp Carbonate of soda
• 4 ozs Ground almonds

Method

Warm the butter slightly but it must not boil. Put it into a bowl with the moist sugar and beat both to a cream. Sift the flour and mix it in a tbsp at a time. Add the currants (previously picked, washed and dried), the peel chopped small, ground almonds and the carbonate of soda. When all these are incorporated, add the yolks of eggs whipped to a froth, mix for 5 minutes. Then add the brandy, and whites of eggs (the latter whipped until firm) and lastly the vinegar, When thoroughly blended turn the mixture into the paper-lined tin. Place in a fairly hot oven so that the cake will rise but do not increase the heat after it has been put in rather let is decrease keeping the oven at  steady heat. Have ready buttered sheets of white paper and when the cake is sufficiently coloured  place a piece of buttered paper upon it to prevent burning. I will take seven to eight hours steady gently cooking. Try the centre with a warm skewer or knitting needle to see that it is not sticky. If it comes out clean and bright and the cake is of a dark rich colour take out and set it aside until it is cold and store in a tin until you want to ice it.