I never considered myself a fruitcake person until I met Dundee cake. And I’d never thought that adding more fruit, in the form of marmalade, to an already very fruity cake would be the thing that would have me coming back just to “tidy the edges”. Legend has it that Mary, Queen of Scots did not like glacé cherries, so the Dundee cake, topped with blanched almonds instead, was created especially for her. I agree with her on the almonds, and with another queen, Marie Antoinette, on her immortal words, which seem very fitting for Christmas: “Let them eat (Dundee) cake.”

Dundee cake

The marmalade sharpens the flavours, as citrus is known to do. This recipe also works really well with gluten-free flour and a gluten-free plant milk of your choice. Once baked, the cake will keep for at least a week wrapped in foil or in a cake tin. You’ll need a 20cm cake tin.

Prep 5 min
Cook 2 hr 10 min, plus cooling time
Serves 12

100g blanched whole almonds
175g softened vegan butter – I like Naturli
175g light brown muscovado sugar
Finely grated zest of 1 orange
100g fine-cut marmalade, plus an extra 3 tbsp for glazing
50g ground almonds
300g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 big pinch fine sea salt
175ml whole oat milk
500g mixed dried fruit, including candied peel, ideally

Heat the oven to 180C (160C fan)/350F/gas 4, then grease a 20cm cake tin and line it with greaseproof paper. Put the almonds in a small heatproof bowl, pour over boiling water to cover and put to one side.

In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and sugar with an electric mixer for three to four minutes, until light and fluffy. Add the orange zest and marmalade, and mix again to get rid of any lumps.

In a second large bowl, mix the ground almonds, flour, baking powder and salt, then tip this dry mixture into the butter bowl. Mix in the milk slowly to make a batter, then fold in the dried fruit. Scrape the batter into the lined tin, and smooth out the top with the back of a spoon.

To decorate the top of the cake, drain the soaked almonds, then place some in a ring all around the outside edge of the cake. Make a second ring of almonds half a centimetre inside the first one, and repeat twice more, to make four almond circles in all (or until you run out of space and/or almonds).

Bake for 45 minutes, then turn down the oven to 160C (140C)/325F/gas 3 and bake for another hour, until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Take the cake out of the oven, brush the top with the extra three tablespoons of marmalade, then put back in the oven for three minutes.

Remove again and leave to cool in the tin before unclipping. If you have the time, wrap the cooled cake in foil and leave for 48 hours before eating – this will really enhance its flavour and texture before slicing and serving.