As my Christmas cake slice was so popular I thought I would make an Easter slice. This is a delicious fruit cake topped with toasted marzipan.
They are perfect for gifts or just to keep for family at Easter.
I have used a mixture of dried fruits, glacé cherries and apricots but you can use whatever are your favourites.
Put the dried fruit, glacé cherries and apricots in a large bowl then add the orange juice and zest. Mix well and leave overnight.
The following day pre-heat the oven to 160 degrees centigrade (140 degrees fan).
Line a 33cm x 22cm (13” x 9”) oblong baking tin with parchment.
In the bowl of a stand mixer for with a hand mixer cream the butter and sugar together until incorporated.
Add the eggs gradually followed by the flour until you have a nice smooth batter.
Finally add the soaked fruit and mix until it is all combined.
Put the mixture into the prepared tin and level the top.
Place in the preheated oven and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave to cool in the tin.
When the cake to totally cool take it out of the tin and remove the baking parchment. Cut the cake into 16 slices.
Roll out the marzipan to slightly bigger than the size of your tin then with a pastry cutter cut out the marzipan to the same size as your slices.
Brush the top of each cake slice with the warmed apricot jam and place each piece of marzipan on the tops.
Score the marzipan pieces diagonally with a sharp knife then use a blow torch to scorch the tops.
Cut 16 Easter shapes out of the leftover marzipan and using the apricot jam stick them on each slice.
Easter Simnel Cake Slice
Sarah’s Servings: 16
Sarah's skill: Medium
Baking time: 60 minutes
Ingredients:
200g Soft unsalted butter
200g Light brown sugar
4 Large eggs
200g Plain flour
550g Mixed dried fruit
150g Quartered glacé cherries
150g Chopped apricots
4 Tbsp Orange juice
Zest of 1 Orange
Decoration
Warmed apricot jam
2 x 454g Packets ready made marzipan
Method:
Put the dried fruit, glacé cherries and apricots in a large bowl then add the orange juice and zest. Mix well and leave overnight.
The following day pre-heat the oven to 160 degrees centigrade (140 degrees fan).
Line a 33cm x 22cm (13” x 9”) oblong baking tin with parchment.
In the bowl of a stand mixer or with a hand mixer cream the butter and sugar together until incorporated.
Add the eggs gradually followed by the flour until you have a nice smooth batter.
Finally add the soaked fruit and mix until it is all combined.
Put the mixture into the prepared tin and level the top.
Place in the preheated oven and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer comes out clean.
Leave to cool in the tin.
When the cake to totally cool take it out of the tin and remove the baking parchment.
Cut the cake into 16 slices.
Roll out the marzipan to slightly bigger than the size of your tin.
With a pastry cutter cut out 16 marzipan pieces to the same size as your slices.
Brush the top of each slice with the warmed apricot jam and place the marzipan pieces on the top of the cakes.
Score the top of the marzipan pieces diagonally with a sharp knife then use a blow torch to scorch the tops.
Cut 16 Easter shapes out of the leftover marzipan and using the apricot jam stick them on each slice.
Sarah’s extra slice……
You can make the cake ahead of time and freeze without the marzipan.
You could add cinnamon or mixed spice if you want.
If you don’t have a blow torch you can leave the marzipan plain and decorate with marzipan shapes.