Smells Like Christmas Spirit Bundt Cake

Christmas baking is the best. Not only does it encompass all my favourite flavours, but the house smells divine. That's where I got my idea for my next festive bundt cake. The smell of Christmas is the thing that reminds me of festive excitement as a child. Sod the Coca Cola advert, for me it's all about walking into shops and sniffing the first whiff of cinnamon and spice.

I knew I'd hit the nail on the head with this one when my husband walked into the house and declared it stank of Christmas - bingo. This cake is packed with spices, dried fruit and fresh zesty orange, making it perfect for the holiday season. It produces a wonderful sugar crust on the bottom, and a naturally dark cake, speckled with cinnamon.

I used my new Nordic Ware Chiffon bundt tin, as I wanted something with a classical look that I could decorate simply. On my test run I just sprinkled it with a little icing sugar to pick up the curves, and for cake club I gave it a bit of a spruce up with icing and a bit of bling. This tin will be available in the UK from January, so keep your eyes peeled!

Ingredients:

• 225g butter
• 300g golden caster sugar
• 150g soft brown sugar
• 4 medium eggs
• 1 tsp lemon extract
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 350g plain flour
• 2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 3 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 250ml plain fat free yogurt 
• Zest of 3 clementines
• Juice of 1 clementine
• 125g large sultanas (I use M&S jumbo ones!)
• 300g icing sugar

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to gas 3/160 C
2. Grease and flour a regular sized bundt tin - 2.4l, 10 cup, 10 inch.
3. Cream the butter and sugars until pale and fluffy.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
5. Stir in the extracts.
6. In a separate bowl, measure out the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt, spices and sultanas - the sultanas will get stuck in the sieve but will be covered in flour, this stops them all sinking!
7. Pour the yogurt, zest and juice into a jug.
8. Sift in a third of the flour mix followed by half the yogurt. Repeat this until everything is combined. Don't over mix or it'll be as tough as Santa's old boots!
9. Stir in the sultanas.
10. Give everything a quick mix on a low speed for about 10 seconds.
11. Pour into your prepared tin.
12. Bake in the centre of the oven for about 1 hour 15 minutes or until a skewer comes out clean. It should be shrinking from the sides of the tin slightly.
13. Leave the cake to cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the tin.
14. Allow it to cool fully. Ice it while it's warm and you'll be sorry. A sloppy sorry mess. 
15. Mix the icing sugar with a little water until it's a runny consistency.
16. Tip it over the cake in what ever fashion makes you happy.
17. I misted mine with a little glitter and adorned it with some kitsch decorations I found in Thyme Deli.

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