Deliciously moist Mincemeat & Almond Cake which is perfect served as an afternoon treat or warm as a comforting dessert. How would you eat yours?
what is mincemeat?
If you’re not from the UK, you might not have heard of mincemeat. It is a sweet mixture of dried fruits, spices and spirits.
So where does the name come from? Well back in the 12th century mincemeat was made using meat as a way of preserving it. Over the years the meat has been swapped for the fruit.
So don’t panic, despite the name there is no meat in mincemeat anymore and it is really tasty!
A different way of using mincemeat
The most common use for mincemeat is to make Mince Pies. They are shortcrust pastry filled with mincemeat and are eaten at Christmas time.
Although I love eating them, I am not a fan of making them – unless it is my Crumble Topped Mince Pies. With traditional mince pies I always get carried away and try to cram in too much mincemeat.
This means they inevitably spill over and I am left with a sticky mess of mincemeat and pastry. Because of this, I like to come up with alternative ways to bake with mincemeat that doesn’t involve a mince pie.
My alternative bakes using mincemeat so far are:
And this year saw the creation of this Mincemeat & Almond Cake.
which mincemeat is best to use?
I would always recommend making my Quick Mincemeat because it is so delicious and easy to make. You can make a batch and have it ready to make festive treats.
I don’t think there is anything wrong with using shop bought mincemeat. This is what most people tend to do and it is convenient.
I would recommend trying to choose a good quality mincemeat. There are quite a few choices; the fruits and spirits use vary and some may even include nuts. Pick one that appeals to you.
adding delicious almond flavour
I love mincemeat and almond together. The flavours work so well and it is just delicious!
There are ground almonds in the sponge mix as well as almond extract. The ground almonds not only add flavour to the sponge but keep the cake moist too.
The almond extract helps enhance the almond flavour further. If you don’t want to include this you don’t have to; but it is lovely!
Sliced almonds are then scattered over the top of the sponge. These add yet more almond flavour but also some texture too.
Is orange zest essential?
Adding orange zest to the cake adds an additional delicious flavour to the cake.
I like to add it to recipes with mincemeat because it really elevates the flavours that are already there.
Depending on the size of your orange, I would add the zest of between half and a whole orange.
If you really didn’t want to include it, you can leave it out.
As it is Christmas, you could add a teaspoon or two of Cointreau. This is an orange flavoured liqueur which would be lovely in this cake.
how to serve this mincemeat & Almond cake
This cake is delicious served as it is as an afternoon treat or for when guests pop over.
It is also great served as a dessert. You could warm it in the microwave for a few seconds and then serve it drizzled with double cream, homemade custard or even brandy butter.
It is Christmas after all so why not be a little indulgent!
An alternative Christmas cake
This Mincemeat & Almond Cake would be a great alternative to a traditional Christmas Cake. These are a rich fruit cake often decorated with marzipan and fondant icing or royal icing.
People either seem to make them religiously each year or not bother with them at all. They are a labour of love and need to be made in advance and fed with spirits over the weeks before Christmas.
This cake would be a great alternative because it is so simple to make and doesn’t need any extra decoration.
You could ice it with fondant or royal icing if you liked. But remember this is a sponge cake and isn’t as robust as a dense fruit cake. Once iced it would still only keep for up to four days.
How many people will this mincemeat cake serve?
If you’re anything like me you will want quite a large slice of this cake!
If you cut generous slices this Mincemeat & Almond Cake should feed ten to twelve people. But if you cut smaller pieces it will obviously feed more!
But who doesn’t want a nice big slice of cake?!
How long will this mincemeat cake last for?
The mincemeat and almonds in this cake help keep it moist. If you keep it in an airtight container this cake will keep for up to four days.
If you’re looking for a mincemeat treat that will keep for even longer, my Mincemeat Christmas Flapjacks might be for you!
Other recipes you might like
- Brioche & Christmas Pudding Bread & Butter Pudding
- Mary Berry’s Christmas Chocolate Cupcakes
- Chocolate Orange Cookie Bars
- Cranberry & White Chocolate Cookies
- Nutella Pinwheels
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Mincemeat & Almond Cake
Deliciously moist Mincemeat & Almond Cake which is perfect served as an afternoon treat or warm as a comforting dessert. How would you eat yours?
Ingredients
- 140 g margarine
- 140 g caster sugar
- 2 eggs
- 140 g ground almonds
- 140 g self raising flour
- ¼ tsp almond extract
- 225 g mincemeat
- 1 orange zested
- 2 tbsp flaked almonds
Instructions
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Heat the oven to 160ºC (fan assisted, 180°C non fan) and line a loose bottomed 8" cake tin
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Mix the margarine and sugar until light and fluffy, at least 5 minutes
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Add the eggs, ground almonds, flour and almond extract and mix together until combined
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Add the orange zest and fold through
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Spread half the mix into the tin and then add the mincemeat and spread out
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Spread the rest of the cake mix on top of the mincemeat and scatter with flaked almonds. Bake for 45-50 minutes and check it's done by using a cocktail stick. If it comes out clean, the cake is done
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Allow to cook in the tin for 30 minutes or so before turning out and leaving to cool completely on a wire rack
Recipe Notes
Keep in an airtight container for up to 4 days.
Nutritional information is given as a guide only and may vary.
Chloe Edges says
I will take a large slice with added cointreau please 🙂
Curly says
Haha sounds good to me!
Choclette says
Ooh, this looks absolutely scrumptious Cat. I’m a big fan of using mincemeat in baking and I usually make some sort of mincemeat cake each year. I haven’t made one this year yet, so it might just have to be yours.
Kat (The Baking Explorer) says
Ooo yes I’d love a slice with some brandy butter! Pure Christmas indulgence!
Curly says
Oooh proper festive! If you can’t go all out at Christmas when can you!
Magdalena - YUM eating says
I love the idea of using mince meat in a completely different way. Each year I buy luxury mince meat fully intending to use it for mince pies, but since there is so many sweets around, I end up using it up in cake making in January! I’m definitely going to try this recipe, it’s a keeper!
Curly says
Thanks 🙂 I always buy it and try to think of any way I can use it but not making mince pies. I love eaten them, just not baking them!
Janice says
Everything about this cake screams make me! I am a huge fan of mincemeat and almonds and this cake will be on my table very soon.
Curly says
Haha thanks Janice. I want to make it again already!
Janice Pattie says
Love this cake! It’s so very delicious and really simple to make. I’d never have thought to put the mincemeat in as a layer. It works so well.
Curly says
So pleased you liked it Janice. I love how well the mincemeat layer works!
Jacqui - Recipes Made Easy:Only Crumbs Remain says
I love the look and sound of this cake its right up my street!. To be honest I find shop bought mincemeat too sweet and homemade so easy to make. I can almost imagine how good it would taste in this cake. Thank you for linking to #CookBlogShare
Curly says
I quite like shop bought mincemeat as long as you get a good one obviously! But I can imagine homemade is even nicer!
Paula Sheppard says
I had a jar of homemade mincemeat so made this today while my sweet chilli jam was bubbling on the hob! Oh my, delicious, had to try it while it was still warm and worth breaking the diet for!! Will be making this for Christmas. Thank you for your lovely recipes
Curly says
Oh fantastic! You’ve been busy! Hope you liked them both 🙂
Corina Blum says
I would love this warm with some ice cream or custard! It sounds absolutely delicious!
Curly says
Ooooh yes! I wish I’d had mine warm with some cream!
Midge @ Peachicks' Bakery says
Love the idea of sandwiching the layer of mincemeat between the sponge mix and baking it in! Beautiful flavour combination too!
Curly says
Thank you! It is so delicious!
Joanna Haywood says
Looks lovely! I’m so glad I found Curly’s Cooking. I was wondering what to do with some left over mincemeat. Thank you ever so much for the recipe!
Curly says
Thank you so much. This is the perfect recipe for using up leftover mincemeat and is so delicious!
Joanna says
I made this last week with our remaining jar of mincemeat. Absolutely delicious! Everyone loved it. I hope I remember it for next year! The other thing is that it is really nutritious, a almonds are so good for you! I had to make sure I had a big slice to get the full benefits!
Curly says
So pleased you liked it Joanna! Oh fantastic, healthy cake!
Sarah Scott says
So I read the recipe and mixed the mix… then realised I’ got it wrong after I mixed the mincemeat in with the mix! I have to say though it turned out really delicious, moist and tasty. Thankyou for the recipe so pleased with it
Curly says
So pleased you liked it Sarah. I can imagine it was very tasty with the mincemeat mixed into the cake!
Luce says
Thank you for this great recipe. The cake is delicious. I used a 8.5” square tin so I multiplied the recipe by 1.5. Next time I will make the bottom layer thinner than the top one because it is a bit too soft, although it did firm up a little after it cooled completely.
Carol says
Thank you for this simple, yet delicious recipe. Made it yesterday to use up leftover mincemeat and it got the thumbs up from everyone. I will definitely make it again.
Curly says
Oh fantastic, so pleased everyone liked it Carol.