LekkerBek has the perfect solution: bake little cakes!

Individual LekkerBek ‘Festive Fruit Cake Muffins'
Makes 12
About R5.50 per cake

Shopping List
12 Hole muffin pan

Cakes
500g Fruit Cake Mix
100g Chopped Pecan Nuts
60ml Brandy
125g Butter
125g (1/2 Cup) Soft Brown Sugar
2 XLarge Eggs
200g (1 & 2/3 Cups) Cake Flour
2.5ml (1/2t) Baking Powder
2.5ml (1/2t) Salt
5ml (1t) Cinnamon

Topping
Sugared Cherries
Blanched (Skinless) Almonds
Apricot Jam

Mixing and Baking

Heat oven to 150 degrees C. Mix fruit and nuts, pour over brandy and let it stand overnight for a lekker soak.
Next day: Using an electric beater, cream butter and sugar until light and creamy, add eggs one at a time and continue beating.
Sift together your flour, baking powder, salt and cinnamon - fold into butter mixture. Add your drunken fruit and nut mixture, and fold through.
Spray your muffin pan with a non-stick spray.
Divide the mixture evenly into the muffin pan and smooth the tops.
Make them pretty- press cherries (red or green) and blanched almonds on top.
Bake for about 45 minutes or until you stick in a sosatie stick, and it comes out dry.
Heat a big dollop of apricot jam in your microwave, (covered or you will have a jam splashed microwave) and paint them as they come out of the oven.
Loosen the sides, and remove from pan – leave to cool.

Don't polish them off in one go!

LekkerBek Tips
• Instead of just fruitmix, add finely chopped SA glace fruit - just stick to the 500g
• Always use non-stick muffin pans - unless you like to eat your cake out of the pan.
• Coat your pan with bakers lard and dust with flour – it’s cheaper than spraying.
• Wrap each fruitcake in aluminium foil to make them last much longer.
• If you want to bake large quantities - go to Linda's Bake and Pack in Westdene for very affordable volume shopping (+27 11 482 2125).

For a fabulous choice of yummy homemade gourmet gifts, visit the Lekkerbek website by following the links alongside.