Easter Simnel Cake
Bake this classic Easter simnel cake. Top with 11 balls of marzipan – said to represent 11 of Jesus’s disciples, leaving off Judas – or with spring flowers
Method
Based on 12 servings, adjust as needed.
Step 1
👋 This recipe is for 1 whole 20cm cake and does not scale down well. Put the mixed dried fruit in a bowl with the orange juice and zest and 2 tbsp water. Cover and microwave for 2 mins, then leave to cool completely. Alternatively, heat gently in a pan, stirring now and then until the liquid has been absorbed and leave to cool.
Step 2
Heat oven to 150C/130C fan/gas 2. Roll out a third of the marzipan and use the base of a deep 20cm cake tin as a template to cut out a circle. Wrap any offcuts and the remaining two-thirds of marzipan and set aside for later. Butter and line the cake tin with a double layer of parchment. Beat the butter and sugar together until creamy. Add 4 eggs, flour, almonds, baking powder, lemon zest, mixed spice and vanilla (all in one go) and mix until well combined. Mix in the cooled soaked dried fruit and fold in the cherries.
Step 3
Scrape half the cake mixture into the tin. Top with the disc of marzipan, then the remaining cake mixture, and level the top with a spatula. Bake for 2 hrs. Check it’s cooked by inserting a skewer to the centre of the cake, if any wet mixture clings to the skewer, return to the oven for another 10 mins, then check again. Cool in the tin for 15 mins, then turn out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely.
Step 4
Brush the top of the cake with apricot jam. Roll out half of the remaining marzipan and use the base of the cake as a template to cut out another disc. Place it on top of the cake and crimp the edges, if you like. Roll the remaining marzipan into 11 equal-sized balls for the apostles. Brush the marzipan with beaten egg and arrange the apostles in a circle on top around the outside, and brush them with a little egg too. Put under a hot grill for a minute or two until just starting to caramelise – be very careful as the marzipan will burn easily. Leave to cool and wrap a ribbon around the cake, if you like. Will keep for up to a week in a sealed tin.
- Ingredients
- Based on 12 servings
-
250g Mixed Dried Fruit, a mixture of sultanas, currants, raisins and candied mixed peel 1x Sainsbury's Mixed Dried Fruit 500g -
5 Eggs, 1 reserved and beaten for the glaze 1x Sainsbury's British Free Range Eggs Medium x6 -
450g Marzipan 1x Sainsbury's Golden Marzipan 454g -
175g Plain Flour 1x Sainsbury's Plain Flour 500g -
1 tsp Baking Powder 1x Sainsbury's Baking Powder 160g -
1 tsp Vanilla Extract 1x Sainsbury's Madagascan Vanilla Extract, Taste the Difference 38ml -
2 tsp Mixed Spice 2x Sainsbury's Ground Mixed Spice 34g -
3 tbsp Apricot Jam 1x Sainsbury's Apricot Jam 454g -
100g Glacé Cherries, halved 1x Sainsbury's Glace Cherries, Halves 200g -
100g Ground Almonds 1x Sainsbury's Ground Almonds 200g -
1 Orange, zested and juiced 1x Sainsbury's Oranges -
250g pack Butter, softened 1x Sainsbury's British Butter, Salted 250g -
200g Light Brown Soft Sugar 1x Sainsbury's Fairtrade Light Soft Brown Sugar 500g -
1 Lemon, zested 1x Sainsbury's Lemons