Mincemeat Christmas cake

To measure dry ingredients in a cup, spoon them lightly into the required level. With a spoon, gently remove any excess by lifting it off the surface towards the mark indicated on the cup. Hold the cup at eye level to ensure the measurement is correct or put the cup on the bench and bend so your eye is level with the mark. To measure dry ingredients in spoons, fill to overflowing then level it by running the straight edge of a knife over the top of the spoon. Do not pack ingredients down unless this is stated in the recipe.

Cake

1 ¾ cups	Wholemeal flour
1 Tbsp	Baking powder
400 g	Christmas mincemeat (Main)
1 cup	Brown sugar, softly packed
150 g	Butter, softened
1 cup	Dried fruit, mixed
50 g	Almond flakes
1	Lemon, finely grated rind
3	Eggs, beaten

Topping

¼ cup	Mixed peel, chopped
¼ cup	Almond flakes
½ cup	Brandy

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 160C. Lightly grease a deep 20-23cm cake pan and line with two or three layers of baking paper.
2. Sift flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Add remaining cake ingredients. Beat with an electric beater or wooden spoon until well mixed.
3. Spoon evenly into cake pan and level surface with a wet hand. Sprinkle peel and flaked almonds over the top.
4. Bake for 1½ hours or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cover with baking paper if top begins to brown too much. Sprinkle with brandy and cool in tin for at least 30 minutes. Turn on to a cake rack to finish cooling. Wrap in foil and store in a cool place.a