Lili Marlene's Christmas Boiled Fruit Cake with Brandy

This recipe is largely based on the Boiled Whisky Fruit Cake on page 218 of Margaret Fulton's Creative Cookery Course, published by Octopus Books Pty Ltd in 1981. This is a different recipe from the Boiled Whisky Fruit Cake published in a recent book by Margaret Fulton of Christmas recipes. I believe that the characteristic smell of Christmas baking is primarily made up of a combination of the smells of brandy and cloves.
Lili Marlene's Christmas Boiled Fruit Cake with Brandy 750g mixed dried fruit (including mixed peel)
185g butter

¾ cup water

1 ¼ cups firmly packed brown sugar

¼ cup brandy and ½ cup brandy for sprinkling on cake when cooked

3 large eggs

1 cup plain flour

1 ½ cups self-raising flour

½ teaspoon bicarb of soda

½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon nutmeg

(optional) blanched whole almonds and halved glace cherries for decorating

Grease and line with greased brown paper a very deep 20cm cake tin (made specifically for fruit cakes). Set the oven at a low to moderate heat (170-180C or less for fan-forced). You could use a larger tin, or bake two smaller cakes with less cooking time.

In a really large saucepan place the fruit, water, butter and brown sugar. Bring to boil slowly while stirring, then boil a couple of minutes. Leave it to cool till lukewarm (this may take some time, you may wish to speed up the process by sitting the lidded saucepan in cold shallow water).

Stir in the brandy with a wooden spoon, then mix in the eggs one at a time. Beat well with spoon. Sift all of the remaining dry ingredients together then stir it into the mixture. Mix well.

Place mixture in the prepared tin. Before baking decorate the top of the cake with blanched almonds and cherries arranged in a pretty pattern. If you only have unblanched almonds - just put them in hot water for a minute or two, drain and leave to cool, and the almond skins will come off easily. If you wish to ice the cake omit this stage. Traditional Christmas cake icing is a layer of marzipan covered in white royal icing made with egg whites.

Bake for 45 minutes, then reduce heat to around 160C and cook for a further 45 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean from the centre of the cake. Leave the cake to cool for a couple of minutes. Turn out carefully onto a wire rack. Remove the paper with care. Turn right side up. Sprinkle or brush cake with around ½ cup of brandy. You may wish to leave the cake a day before eating. This cake should keep well in an airtight container, in the fridge if necessary.