Prepare a 25cm round or square cake tin by putting two layers of newspaper in the bottom and up the sides, followed by a layer of brown paper and then finally a layer of baking paper which you will grease on the bottom and sides with butter OR spray all over with a baking non-stick spray of your choice. Also preheat the oven to 150°C (300°F)

Put the Mixed Fruit and the first 1/2 cup of Flour in a bowl and stir to dredge the fruit in the flour

In a saucepan, put the butter, brown sugar and golden syrup and heat over a medium heat until butter is fully melted, stirring all the time. Cool for 10 minutes

Whisk the eggs one at a time into the caramel mixture. Then add the lemon rind, vanilla and the spices. Mixed well

Add this caramel mixture to the dredged fruit and stir thoroughly to combine.

Add the remaining flour, bicarbonate of Soda and the salt and combine well again. Then stir in the alcohol or the orange juice, whichever is your choice.

Spoon mixture into prepared tin. Place in the centre of the preheated oven. before pushing the rack in and closing the door, dip your fingers into water and liberally sprinkle the water over the top of the cake. This prevents cracking too much. Bake at 150°C (300°F) for 1.5 hours then turn the oven down to 130°C (265°F) and cook for a further 2.5 hours. (Start checking from 30 minutes before allotted time is up. Check by inserting a metal skewer into centre. Should come out clean)

Once cooked, remove from the oven and leave in the tin on top of a cake rack for one hour. Then turn out cake onto rack and let cool completely before trimming and icing with royal icing OR perhaps glazed nuts. I even like it plain on its own.

Note: If your oven is only fan-forced then cook at 145°C (290°F) for 1.5 hours and then at 125°C (255°F) for a further 1.5 hours and check with the skewer. Check every ten minutes there after until the skewer comes out clean. Results of this cake on fan-forced can be just as good as conventional baking but this adjustment must be adhered to or the cake can become too dry or burnt. If cooking conventionally then if the times are adhered to the cake will always be lovely and moist and never burnt.

Enjoy! :-)