Traditional Christmas Cake from the UK

When I was growing up in Ireland every Christmas my Mom along with millions of other Women would make their Traditional "Christmas Cake". For years I have looked for such a recipe and well thanks to a fellow blogger from the UK, I finally have found it! Hat Tip http://frugalityuk.blogspot.com 1 kg mixed dried fruit (cheapest of the cheap own supermarket brand in my case) 100g glacé cherries 100g chopped walnuts 400ml liquor (anything you want, brandy is traditional, but I didn't have any, so used some rum) 300g butter 180g dark brown sugar 4 eggs 2 tablespoons black treacle 300g plain flour 150g ground almonds 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon of ginger 23cm cake tin Method 1) put all the fruit and cherries in a bowl and pour over the liquor of your choice. Cover with cling film for as long as you can, up to a week, but certainly not less that 24 hours. You want the liquor to be absorbed. 2) preheat oven to 150 degrees C and prepare the cake tin, you want it greased and lined with greaseproof paper (double thickness) and have it coming up the sides at least twice as high as the cake tin. 3) Cream together the butter and the sugar, then add the eggs one at a time and mix them in then beat in the treacle. 4) Sift the dry ingredients together then mix the soaked fruit alternatively with the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture, mixing thoroughly. 5) Fold in the walnuts. 6) Put the mixture into the prepared cake tin and bake in the oven for between 2 and three quarters and 3 and a quarter hours. put in a skewer to check it is cooked - it should come out clean (ish) 7) When the cake comes out, sprinkle on a couple of teaspoons of some liquor and wrap it up, in it's tin, in a clean tea towel - this helps keep the top moist. 8) When it is completely cold you can remove it from the tin and peel off the greaseproof paper. Double wrap in foil and store in an airtight tin or tupperware for at least 3 weeks before you do the next stage. I will not do the next stage on mine until December. Feeding the cake. Sprinkle a tablespoon of liquor on the cake once a week, turning it each time so you are alternately sprinkling both sides. After it has 'matured' you want to wrap it in marzipan, using a jam glue and then ice it with Royal icing and decorate.