IT Girl: Nigella Lawson

As you might have noticed : it’s Christmas time, and during this time of indulgence, delight and joy I stumbled upon my new style icon on Vitaya: Nigella Lawson.
This sensual cooking lady really embodies the Christmas spirit and just makes you want to bake cookies, throw happy dinner parties and savour all things creamy and wrong for you. No better time to do this than right before the new year (where obviously one of my resolutions will be to eat healthier…). So hurray for indulgence and here a great recipe, a must-try for the holiday season. For the cooking dummy's: there are some youtube video's of nigella's cooking talents...you might want to watch these before diving into your kitchen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TC_tA8sdFo






Christmas Cake:
Ingredients
12 1/4 ounces (350 grams) dried soft prunes, chopped
8 3/4 ounces (250 grams) raisins
4 1/2 ounces(125 grams) currants
6 1/4 ounces (175 grams) unsalted butter, softened
6 1/4 (175 grams) dark muscovado sugar
6 1/4 fluid ounces (175 ml) honey
4 1/2 fluid ounces (125 ml) coffee liqueur
2 oranges, zested and juiced
1 teaspoon mixed spice
2 tablespoons good quality cocoa
3 free-range eggs, beaten
5 1/4 ounces (150 grams) plain flour
2 1/2 ounces (75 grams) ground almonds
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

For decoration:
1-ounce (25 grams) dark chocolate-covered coffee beans
Edible glitter
Gold mini balls
About 10 edible gold stars
Directions
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C).


Line the sides and bottom of an 8 by 3 1/2-inch deep, round loose-bottomed cake tin with a layer of reusable silicon baking parchment. When lining the tin with the parchment, cut the material into strips that are twice as high as the tin itself (it is easier to use two shorter strips of parchment, than one long strip); the height of the strips protects the cake from catching on the outside of the cake tin.


Place the fruit, butter, sugar, honey, coffee liqueur, orange zest and juice, mixed spice and cocoa into a large wide saucepan. Heat the mixture until it reaches a gentle boil, stirring the mixture as the butter melts. Let the mixture simmer for 10 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and leave to stand for 30 minutes.


After 30 minutes, the mixture will have cooled a little. Add the eggs, flour, ground almonds, baking powder and baking soda, and mix well with a wooden spoon or spatula until the ingredients have combined.


Carefully pour the fruitcake mixture into the lined cake tin. Transfer the cake tin to the oven and bake for 1 3/4 to 2 hours, or until the top of the cake is firm but will has a shiny and sticky look. At this point, if you insert a sharp knife into the middle of the cake, the cake should still be a little uncooked in the middle.


Place the cake on a cooling rack. Once the cake has cooled, remove it from the tin.


To decorate, place the chocolate-covered coffee beans in the centre of the cake and arrange the gold stars around the perimeter of the top of the cake. Then sprinkle some gold mini-balls over the whole cake and sprinkle the top with edible glitter.