My First Christmas Cake

Tiny Tim

I am a long time fan of fruit cakes and will usually pick fruitcake over the usual varieties but what I've never done is actually make one. With Christmas approaching this seemed like a good time to have a go.
Why are you making it in October I hear you ask? well unlike its chocolate and sponge cousins, a fruit cake matures and improves over time when stored in a cool dry place and wrapped tightly up. The quality of the cake is also improved by 'feeding' the cake at regular intervals with an alcohol such as whisky, brandy etc.
So without gilding the lily and with no more ado (salute to the first person who names the source of this quote) here is the recipe I have used for my first ever Christmas cake.

Ingredients

  1lb Currants

 8oz Sultanas

 4oz Raisins

 2oz Glacé Cherries

 2oz Cut Mixed Peel

 1  1/2 oz Ground Almonds

 1/4 tsp Orange Rind

1/4 tsp Lemon Rind

4 Tblsp Brandy

10 oz Self Raising Flour

Pinch of Salt

1 tsp Mixed Spice

8oz Butter

8 oz Soft Brown Sugar

6 Eggs

1 tbsp Black Treacle

Method
Add the first 8 ingredients to a bowl and pour over the Brandy, mix well and leave, at the very least. overnight. I left mine from Friday night to Sunday late afternoon.
Cream the butter and sugar together and rub into the flour, mixed spice and salt.
Combine this mixture with the soaked fruit.
Add the treacle and the beaten eggs and mix well.
Line your chosen tin, for this I used a 8 inch square tin but feel free to use what ever tin you like such as small round 4 inch tins or larger 6 inch tin but try and use a deep cake tin.
I think lining tins is a horrendous irritating part of baking (mainly because I cant do it properly) so here is a guide courtesy of HRH Delia Smith: how to line a baking tin.
Place it in a pre-heated oven at the appropriate temperature and time

Baking times
For an 8 inch square tin: 160 degrees Celsius for 1 hour and 10 mins then 140 degrees Celsius for 50 minutes.
          6 inch round tin: 160 degrees Celsius for 1 hour  then 140 degrees Celsius for 40 minutes.
          4 inch round tin: 160 degrees Celsius for 1 hour then 140 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes.

These times are a guide, after the time as passed, stick a skewer into the centre of the cake, if it comes out clean the cake is cooked. if not stick it back in and check every 10 - 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and tin and place on a cooling rack. Pierce the cake at several points and pour a few tablespoons of brandy over the cake. This is called 'feeding' and can be done weekly or monthly up until Christmas.

Once cooled, wrap in baking paper and then again in foil and store in a cool dry place.

Sit back with a cup of tea and wait for Christmas and my icing post!

This recipe is borrowed with thanks from The Bakelady over at: http://bakelady.wordpress.com/, go check out her lovely blog and other baking recipes.

Distrikt, Leeds

I have wanted to visit Distrikt for awhile, so after reading reasonably good reviews about the food and hearing about the unusual design for an eating establishment we went along.
Distrikt is located on Duncan Street down a small alley, in which for some reason, tables and chairs appear during the day and evening. It wouldn't be my choice to eat or drink there but I'm assuming its for the smokers. The entrance is similar to entering a club and the restaurant, if you can call it that, is located underground. The club theme continues at the bottom of the staircase with quite a dark room with a well stocked bar, tables and booths which we eventually moved to when one emptied.
We were quickly greeted by a pleasant member of staff who provided us with the menus, while browsing we ordered cocktails which were on a 2-4-1 offer. I ordered a Mojito and the Other Half ordered a Cosmopolitan, now either the waitress got very confused or the offer didn't allow two different ones to be ordered because two Mojitos and two cosmopolitans arrived which amused but hey its 2-4-1 so we drank them anyway.
The food is Tapas style with Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and British influences, we decided to pick five and a meat sharing platter.

Smoked mackerel brandade with pita crisp.
Harrissa chicken wings with lime aioli.
Sticky caraway short ribs.
Rare beef, foraged salad and horseradish.
Meat and cheese platter.
Mussels in wheat beer

Ribs and Mussels

Mackerel and Chicken Wings

Beef

Meat and Cheese Platter

The food was very good, we chose to get the dishes as they were made instead of all at once, which I think is probably the best way because we could enjoy each dish individually. My particular favourite was the rare beef, soft and tender and perfectly cooked.
Afterwards we ordered some of the tapas puddings.
BBQ banana with Jack Daniels, chocolate and toffee
Summer fruit crumble

Crumble and JD Banana

The puddings were also very good, the crumble in particular was very fresh with crunchy crumble and huge pieces of fruit in a sauce that wasn't too sweet or too sour.
Service was slightly haphazard but good, the waitress completely forgot to return to take our pudding orders but was very apologetic when she realised, she was also very informative about the dishes and exactly how much food we were ordering.
The final bill came to £31 (minus the cocktails). Excellent value for the quality and amount of food we received.

Distrikt
7 Duncan Street,
Leeds,
LS1 6DQ
0113 243 3674

The Blue Bell, York

 Easily my favourite pub in York. a perfect example of how a pub should be in my opinion. Located on Fossgate a bit off the beaten tourist path, The Blue Bell is York's smallest pub, it consists of two very small rooms with a bar separating each room, a long corridor joins each room and is usually a drinking location when the rooms are full and by full I mean no more than ten people in each room. It is quite a novel experience ordering a pint through a little hatch in the backroom or standing at the door into the bar area.
For a tiny pub, there is quite a good selection of ale, along with a scrumpy cider, crammed onto the bar all in perfect condition. the pub still retains its fixtures that have been there since 1906 and the back room is like someones old fashioned living room, with a mantle piece, fire and various random pieces of furniture, very cosy in winter.
The pub has 3 rules however;
1. No Large Groups
2. No Swearing
3. No Mobile Phones.

Brilliant

The Blue Bell
53 Fossgate
York,
North Yorkshire,
YO1 9TF
01904 654 904

My Top 5 Pubs in York

 York has got to be one of my favourite cities, beautiful architecture, a wide varied collection of quaint shops and a sense of history at every turn but one thing i really like about the city is, of course, it's vast collection of real ale pubs. I am unsure of the exact number but its rumoured to be in the hundreds both inside and outside the city walls. Being a regular visitor, albeit not as regular as I'd like, I have visited a few of these so I thought I would do a post on my top 5.

5. The Kings Arms
Located on the bank of the River Ouze, this pub serves Sam Smiths beer, for those ale drinkers among you this means cheap but good beer. The pub itself is not great its a bit grimy and it gets packed by every tourist in York ( or seems that way at times). The reason I have include this is because once you have battled through the crowds, got a drink and found a spot on the bank of the river on a beautiful summers day, then you just forget all that and watch the world go by. Perfect in Summer, head somewhere else in Winter.

Kings Arms

4. Maltings
Those of you who frequent York by train will probably know of this pub due to its close proximity to the station. Its possesses a dramatic black stone exterior, which can be slightly off putting but if you get over that and wander in then you won't be disappointed. It is a small one roomed pub decorated with; tiled floor, old style tin signs, a bar made of old doors and for some reason the days broadsheet papers in frames in the gents toilet. The Maltings serves plenty of real ales and ciders and there will be a drink that takes your fancy. Great pub.

Maltings

3. The Golden Fleece
The most haunted pub in Britain (apparently). If this sort of thing appeals then that reason alone is worth visiting, the rest of us can enjoy a decent pub. It may or may not be the most haunted but it can claim to be one of York's oldest, dating back to the 16th century. The beer range is not very adventurous with most of the usual suspects making an appearance, Black Sheep, Taylors etc. It is decorated in traditional pub style, with photos and little pieces of history on the walls. Located at the end of The Shambles.

Golden Fleece

2. The York Brewery Pubs
I couldn't decide which of the pubs owned by the cities brewery as my number 2, so I've included them all. Each pub serves the breweries beers alongside a couple of guests and they all serve bar meals. I'll try and keep the descriptions brief. Yorkshire Terrier - cosy and intimate, located behind a little shop selling bottles and merchandise from the brewery. Three Legged Mare - open and light, almost like a wine bar. Last Drop Inn - sort of a cross between a bar and a pub. Each is worth a visit for their own individual personalities.

Three Legged Mare

Yorkshire Terrier

The Last Drop Inn

1. The Blue Bell
I think this one needs its own post - The Blue Bell

Harlequin Cafe, York

 On a recent trip to York, we decided to start off with a coffee, a quick search on Google and the Harlequin Cafe kept featuring with good reviews so we decided to head there.
It is located on King Square, near the Minster and The Shambles. It is quite easy to miss as it is just a doorway next to a Bookmakers. The cafe is located on the 1st floor above it.






The cafe is light and airy with various art prints on the walls. It was reasonably busy considering its location. we sat down and a friendly waitress came over and took our order, I opted to try their house blend served in an individual French Press. The Other Half decided on a cold drink and chose Fentimens Dandelion and Burdock.
Service was very good, quick and friendly, I was pleased to be offered the choice of cold/hot milk or cream with my coffee.

The coffee itself was very good, rich with subtle hints of chocolate. A variety of usual cafe food was on offer such as sandwiches soup etc... the selection of cakes also looked very tempting but with our next stop being the food festival we resisted.
Overall a very good coffee house and a little oasis from the hustle of York on a Saturday

2, Kings Square
York,

Ale #2 Rudgate Ruby Mild

Apperance: Dark, Ruby

Flavour: Smooth, combination of bitter, hops and sweetness

Aroma: Sweet with hints of smoke



Why its on here: Ruby Mild was crowned to be last years Champion Beer of Britain at the Great British Beer Festival. This is quite impressive considering it is a mild, which have been falling out of favour the past few years. The beer is delicious and complex. It drinks smooth and is quite hoppy and bitter for a mild but these work very well together. Well worth a pint

Calls Landing, Leeds

On the hunt for food on a sunny afternoon, we decided to head to The Calls Landing to try it out. located on the riverside, the pub/restaurant is rather quite spacious. It advertises itself as a stew and oyster kitchen and so on the menu, which was a chalkboard inside, were 3 stews and oyster selections. I was told that the kitchen was being refitted so this was all they were able to make. I was disappointed no to find any decent ales on offer especially with the prominence of the Theakstons logo, the bar had the usual suspects on and a not to shabby bottle selection, I settled for a pint of the Black Stuff.
We each opted for the chilli over a vegetarian Butternut squash stew and a intriguing Cowboy stew of Cumberland sausage and baked beans and sat outside in their small riverside beer garden. Service was speedy, I would have been annoyed if it wasn't considering stews do not take much effort to serve. The dishes themselves were very nicely presented, a large bowl of flavoursome chilli with the right amount of spice giving it a slight burn, it was very good. It was topped off with shavings of Cheddar, sour cream and rocket leaves and served with very soft white bread. I would have preferred a carbohydrate to go with it (other than bread) such as rice or a jacket potato but it was quite filling without it.

Chilli

The final bill (paid upon ordering) was £13 (not including drinks). Reasonable value for lunch and quite tasty chilli.

Calls Landing
36-38 The Calls
Leeds,
LS2 7EW