Gundog Estate and Christmas Cake

I bake Christmas cakes every year. I saved a Christmas cake from last year, all wrapped up and placed in the back of the pantry, and it’s just come out for dessert this Christmas Eve. I use the Nigella Lawson recipe, but I soak the fruit for at least 4 weeks prior to making the cakes, and I then drizzle each individual cake with extra brandy for at least 2 weeks in the lead up to handing them over to their owners. 

This cake that I’ve matched with a Gundog Estate NV muscat is divine. Rich, fruity and still moist as if baked yesterday. If, like me, you spend at least 5 days cooking in the lead up to Christmas, and you want to relax on the day (and night), putting a platter of sweet treats together and adding a divine sticky, makes the end of the Christmas meal as resplendent as the main show, perhaps even better in my opinion.

I’ve bought mince pies from Bakers Delight, and cut up some of the aged fruit cake, added scorched almonds and fresh cherries to make this dessert platter fit for a King and Queen. It’s time to sit back, relax, take a sip of the unctuous Gundog Estate Muscat and survey the damage. (Cook doesn’t clean up)