Mini Christmas cakes

flier3, Nov 17, 6:09am
About a week or so ago, I asked about cooking times for these wee ones. Well, I made some today and they came out perfectly!SOI pleased with them - was going to have one warmed with some home-made ice-cream - but I couldn't wait .

2603962, Nov 17, 6:16am
Yum can you please share your recipe

flier3, Nov 17, 6:22am
I had bought some mini loaf tins to use, there are 8 'tins' to each slide andmeasure about 9 x 5cm.I just used my usual Christmas cake recipe (which I cook in a 20cm square or round tin) and this was the perfect amount to make 16 lil cakes (If I could figure out - AGAIN - how to post a photo, I would). I plan to ice them and give them to my older friends as a taster.

289capri, Nov 17, 10:00pm
What a great idea as gifts, they look very nice.

gilligee, Nov 17, 10:05pm
Well done.

kuaka, Nov 17, 10:06pm
My sister used to go to a cake decorating club and they always used to have a competition close to Christmas for an iced mini-cake and after the comp they cakes used to be given to elderly folk living alone.They used to bake them in the tins from tinned pineapple, as they are wider than the normal baked bean tins and not as tall.

rebecca18, Nov 18, 12:30am
I used to make mini Christmas cakes in old smoked fish tins.

korbo, Nov 18, 4:30am
please, where did you get the 8 from.
I have only seen 4 on a tray.thanks.

jennyp2, Nov 18, 4:32am
yes so did we, using a wedding cake recipe ( 12 eggs, 1lb butter, fruit soaked in brandy etc. ) it used to make 21 fish tin cakes and before cooking the tops were decorated withskinned almonds around the outsideand a wee red cherry in the middle! They looked fantastic, we wrapped them in cellophane and sold them ( many years ago now )

flier3, Nov 18, 6:40am
I bought mine at the red shed!

chooky, Nov 18, 10:25am
I brought mine from spotlight. I make stickey date puddings in mine. Must do some christmas cakes now. Thanks.

carchic, Nov 19, 2:50am
also stevens have them =o) min loaf ones on a tray and also friand ones =o)

fifie, Nov 19, 5:04am
Make my mini cakesabout last weekend nov in texas muffin tins, decorate with nuts and glaze, or ice with A paste and fondant, turn out lovely look good wrapped in cellophane for gifts.

52many, Nov 19, 5:11am
MMmmmmmmmmm can smell them from here! They look awesome!

gdwitch, Nov 20, 8:01pm
Mini christmas cakes sound great for those family members who have everything they need but you'd just like to give them 'a little something' too.Would love a recipe if anyone would like to share and baking temperature and time to cook.Thanks in advance.

fifie, Nov 20, 11:40pm
Here'sone i always use now, have tried many recipes but this is a fav for flavour.I Make it in the texas (big muffin) tins but you can use others.
Recipe is from Kiwi trish originally, here is half that recipe, this Quantity is enough for my 12 tins.
500gr fruit, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup water, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp mixed spice, 125gr butter, 1 Tbsp golden syrup. Boil the listed ingredients together, let cool. Add 2 eggs, 2 cups plain flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ginger and a pinch of curry powder (yes curry powder. It brings out the spices in the cake)
Mix well and place into greased texas muffin tins with a circle of baking paper in bottom,in my oven its quick i put 2 mags on the oven rack so bottoms dosent burn, and bake at temperature of 130 degs for 75-80 mins test with a toothpick, when done cool slightly in tin, wrap tin and cakes in a clean towel sit in pantry where its cool till you are ready to ice or decorate with nuts and abrandy glaze. Wrap in cellophane and tie with a fancy bow, they are lovely as a extra gift. Check out the OP shops for tins, larger tins might need to alter oven temp up a bit to around 150c, every oven is different trial and error lol.

flier3, Nov 21, 4:48am
Here is the recipe I have used for years (probably other posters will have used it too)

Ingreds:
12oz butter, 12oz sugar, 5 eggs, 4 Tbsp crushed pineapple, 1 Tbsp warmed golden syrup, 1tsp each lemon, almond and vanilla essence, 3lb mixed fruit, 12 oz flour, 1 tsp each cimmon and mixed spice,

Method:
Cream butter and sugar till light and creamy, add eggs singly and beat well.Add pineapple, golden syrup and essences.Add fruit and mix well.Add flour and spices.

Oven to 250 deg C.I put baking paper in the bottom of the 9cm x 5cm tins-in-a-tray (sorry, can't for the life of me think what they are called - mini loaf tins all joined together!) and greased and floured the sides. ( this wasn't as fiddly as I thought it would be. I did it all in the mixing bowl and just stirred the flour in.

Bake for around 80mins but check from around 75mins.Eat and enjoy (after licking the mixing bowl - the best part of it!)

calista, Nov 21, 5:53am
Google "Little Pineapple Christmas Cakes" - It takes you to Alisonand Simon Holst's pagethat explains how to make mini versions of her 23cmPineapple Christmas cake.

One year someone from Dunedin linked to an artice in the Otago Daily Times that showed a competition for making and decorating the cakes.They were made in cardboard "tins" that were 10cmx10cm. (You take a 20cm piece of cardboard, fold up 5cm along each side and staple it up).

This was the recipe that originally used well washed fish tins.

flier3, Nov 21, 7:08am
Mmmmm they look so pretty and delicious, toadfish!

millseys, Nov 21, 7:19am
I have done them in the past in Texas muffin pans topped with nuts and cherries. Like the rectangle ones though :-)

jennyp2, Nov 21, 8:02am
toadfish, they look awsome! Silly question, but i want to use nuts on top of my mini oblong ones this year, are they put on before baking or after ( is the apricot jam glaze enough to hold them on when they are cooked!) when we made wee round ones, the almonds were cooked with the cake but i want more nuts on top of these ones

toadfish, Nov 21, 8:34am
I put them on after they were cooked and the apricot glaze was enough to hold them on. I used roasted almonds.Put the glaze on the cake (like a glue lol)then the nuts and then glazed over the top.

toadfish, Nov 21, 8:34am
I put them on after they were cooked and the apricot glaze was enough to hold them on. I used roasted almonds.Put the glaze on the cake (like a glue lol)then the nuts and then glazed over the top.

I wrapped then in gladwrap. I put a piece on top and then pulled the sides underneath so it was one layer and taut over the pretty bit (kept them nice and clean and fresh).Then I put that in cellophane and tied a ribbon on it.Everyone in my office got one.

jennyp2, Nov 21, 8:33pm
thanks, I googled it as well and it seems both ways work, I was a little worried about the jam/glue working but it appears it does! Another recipe said to hold a little mixture back and about 30mins from the end spread it overtop and then place the nuts on, so I have heaps of ideas thanks. One recipe said to roast the nut first to enhance the flavour and colour so there is another option, thanks for your reply