Christmas is just around the corner. And with it comes the hustle and bustle of cooking all sorts of festive dishes. For many people, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without a homemade fruit cake or two to go alongside their traditional turkey dinner and Christmas gifts. But what if you want to take things up a notch? How do you make your cakes stand out from everyone else’s? Here are some ideas for baking beautiful looking cakes that will have all your family coming back for more.
1. Gingerbread Christmas cake with royal icing decorations
If you’re a fan of gingerbread, then this is the cake for you. Simple to make and with a beautifully festive look. There’s no reason why every fruit cake shouldn’t be gingerbread shaped. For something that looks so simple to achieve. There are actually two stages of cooking involved in order to get the perfect gingerbread sponge.
The first stage requires making a spiced batter which can either be baked as cakes or spooned into your chosen tin for an alternative loaf shape. The second stage comes after the cakes have cooled down enough for icing them. Perhaps several hours later if it’s your main Christmas event. If you’d like these cakes to really sparkle on serving day, royal icing never fails at looking impressive when used to decorate.
2. Chocolate Christmas cake with vanilla buttercream frosting
This Christmas cake is for those who love luxuries. Chocolate sponge sits below layers of rich buttercream frosting – topped with more buttercream. There’s no fruit insight on this one. But if you’re having something else as your main Christmas course then it doesn’t matter what time of day this beauty comes out.
The recipe suggests making the sponge layers a day in advance before the whole thing is decorated. But I get by with freezing them until needed. The buttercream can be made and mixed together in less than half an hour too. So if you’re looking for something impressive to show off but don’t want to spend hours in the kitchen, this is your go-to cake.
3. Pineapple upside down Christmas cake
Another festive favourite is this pineapple upside-down Christmas cake. The recipe suggests using fresh pineapple in the topping, but canned pineapple will do just fine too – whichever you have on hand. The downside to making sponge cakes is having to wait for them to cool down before decorating them with buttercream frosting.
This can be a problem when your guests are waiting in anticipation, which is why this cake is a pretty good idea for a day when you have guests coming over. But aren’t sure if they’ll be hungry before dinner. Simply top the cakes with buttercream and leave them to cool down somewhere out of sight from your famished houseguests.
4. Lemon poppy seed Christmas cake with raspberry coulis and lemon curd filling
If you know anyone who doesn’t like cake, then challenge them to eat this one and they’ll soon change their mind. The lemon poppy seed sponge is flavoured with lemon curd. So basically there’s a whole jar of the stuff inside your beautiful cake. Topped with raspberry coulis and lots of buttercream frosting in between the layers, this is a citrusy treat for anyone with a taste for something different.
5. Classic fruitcake made in a Bundt pan, covered in marzipan and dusted in sugar
If you’re looking for something that’s not just fruitcake. Then this Bundt cake is the one for you. The classic Christmas cake turned into a showstopper. If your family aren’t fans of fruitcakes but love marzipan. Then this recipe might be the best way to win them over. The cake itself is moist and delicious, but the best bit comes when you cut it open to reveal all the candied fruit inside. If you don’t have a Bundt pan on hand, then a traditional ring tin will do just fine.
6. White chocolate peppermint bark layered on top of a rich red velvet layer cake topped with cream cheese frosting
The perfect Christmas cake for those with a sweet tooth. This recipe suggests serving the cake in slices. I’ve found that most cakes are at their best when sliced and served straight away. All of the icing is evenly dispersed throughout each layer. The flavour of red velvet works wonderfully with white chocolate, while peppermint adds an extra festive twist to your cake. This is definitely a showstopper that will have everyone asking for more.
Conclusion
These are just some of the recipes that will make your Christmas cake stand out from the crowd. Whether you’re making these as cakes or as loaves, let us know how they turn out! We’ll be sharing them on our social media too, so make sure to ‘like’ us.