Ingredients:
1.5kg mixed dried fruit
250g glace cherries, red and green mixed
100g mixed peel
1 tablespoon grated orange rind
1 tablespoon grated lemon rind
1/2 cup brandy or dark rum
500g butter
1 1/2 cups Chelsea Dark Cane Sugar
8 eggs
2 bananas
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
4 cups flour
1 cup self raising flour

Place the mixed fruit, cherries, mixed peel, orange rind, lemon rind and brandy or rum in a large bowl and mix well. Cover and leave overnight.
Cream butter and sugar until it is light and fluffy, add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition, and then add the bananas and vanilla essence. Stir in the fruit mixture, mix well and add the flour. Mix until well combined.
Place in a deep 25cm cake tin, which had been lined with two layers of brown paper and one layer of grease proof paper. Bake at 150°C for approximately three and a half hours, or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean.

Makes large family size deep 25cm Christmas cake

Better oven baking
For biscuits and muffins use fan bake if possible (as these cook relatively quickly) but a regular oven is best for cakes.