Sweet treats: Make this mince pie bundt cake to keep you busy during the festive break

If you are in the mood to get baking during the holiday period then you might fancy trying your hand at these festive takes on the bundt cake.

The Cottage delight mince pie version if the perfect Twixmas treat, and the lemon, honey and ginger flavour sounds like the perfect addition to any coffee catch up.

With two flavours to choose from, why not make one first and then follow up with the other?

Cottage delight mince pie bundt cake

Serves 10

Ingredients

• 250g unsalted butter
• 220g golden caster sugar
• 200g light muscovado sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 350g plain yoghurt
• 2 tsp mixed spice
• 1 jar Luxury Tipsy Mincemeat
• 320g plain flour
• 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• Tiny pinch of salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

For the decoration:

• 170g icing sugar
• 1 egg white at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• Thinly sliced orange or frozen berries

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 175C/150 Fan/325F/Gas Mark 3.
2. Grease the bundt pan with melted butter and dust with flour.
3. In a stand mixer, mix the butter and sugars until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and mix together.
4. Mix the plain yoghurt and Luxury Tipsy Mincemeat together and add to the mixer.
5. In a separate bowl, measure and sieve out the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and all the ground spices.
6. Sieve in the flour gradually and stop when the flour is evenly mixed in.
7. Pour the mix into a greased and floured tin and bake for one hour or until a skewer comes out clean.
8. The cake will pull away from the edge of the tin when it is ready.
9. Leave the cake to cool fully before removing from the tin.
   While waiting to cool, make your icing sugar drip. Place icing sugar, egg white and lemon juice into your mixer. Beat on med high for around five to seven minutes until it forms soft peaks and is loose enough to drizzle.
10. Pour over and allow to cool/set.

Maldon Salt preserved lemon, honey and ginger bundt cake

Serves 8

Ingredients

• 375g plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• Pinch of Maldon salt
• 100g unsalted butter,
• room temperature
• 300g caster sugar
• 4 eggs
• 100g Odysea honey
• 100ml olive oil
• 2 small Odysea preserved lemons, flesh and pips removed and roughly chopped
• 50g stem ginger, drained

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180C/160 Fan/350F/Gas Mark 4. Thoroughly grease a bundt tin and tap out with caster sugar. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl mix together the plain flour, baking powder, ground ginger, cinnamon and Maldon salt.
3. In a food processor, add the preserved lemon and stem ginger and blitz together until it forms a nearly smooth paste.
4. In a stand mixer, add the softened butter and sugar and beat together until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Then add the honey, olive oil and preserved lemon ginger puree and beat again. Finally add the dry mix and fold through until fully incorporated and smooth.
5. Spoon into the prepared loaf tin and smooth over the top. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes until well risen, golden brown and a skewer comes out clean.
6. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
7. Garnish with lemon slices and a drizzle of lemon icing.