Christmas Cake With a Twist

Put the dried fruit into a bowl . Add the ginger wine and stir everything together. Cover with cling or place in a sealed container for up to a week.

Grease and line the base and sides of a 15cm (6in) cake tin. Preheat the oven to 180°C (fan 160°C, gas mark 4).

Put the butter and sugar into a bowl and cream together with a hand held mixer until light and fluffy.

Gradually add the eggs a little at a time, adding 2 tbsp of flour to stop the mixture curdling. Sift in the remaining flour and mixed spice, then fold in.

Put half the macerated fruit into a processor and whizz until it's smooth Add to the flour with the rest of the fruit and boozy liquid. Fold everything together.

Spoon into prepared tin, smoothing over the surface, leaving a slight dip in the surface. Bake for 1 ½ hours. Cool in the tin.

Turn the cake onto serving plate or board and peel away the lining paper. Brush the top and sides of the cake with apricot glaze.

Roll out the marzipan on a sheet of baking parchment to a 25cm / 10inch circle. Lift up the paper and upturn the marzipan, positioning it centrally. Peel away the paper, then gently press and smooth the marzipan around the top and sides of the cake with the palm of your hand. Trim off excess marzipan around the base of the cake.

Put the egg whites into a large bowl and gradually beat in the icing sugar (with a wooden spoon or in a free standing electric mixer) until it¹s a stiff mixture. Add the glycerine.

Use a palette knife to spread the icing over the top of the cake, smoothing and peaking. Now spread the cake smoothly over the sides of the cake.