We don't want to alarm you, but Christmas is happening in a matter of weeks, whether we're ready or not. And, of course, we're not ready. We're actually never ready...
Never mind, we've got every festive busy bee covered with a Christmas cake to suit. Some need a spare afternoon and lots of 'maturing time', others you can whip up on the morning of. Some are chock full of fruit and others are delightfully fruit-free, so even traditional fruitcake haters will be lining up for a serve.
However you make yours, a Christmas cake is a must for topping off a fine day with your nearest and dearest. So enjoy the prep and remember to keep it simple. That way you'll simply keep it coming year after year!
Start your morning with a Filipino Christmas treat. Bibingka is traditionally cooked by street vendors nine nights before Christmas, but go ahead and make them every night.
A brandy-soaked fruitcake gets a modern twist with the addition of dried sour cherries and crunchy macadamias. This one is especially good served with vanilla ice cream for dessert.
Christmas cake does not have to be rich and dense - light and bright is welcome too. You can make this citrusy cake on the 25th, though you'll need to make the festive dried orange decoration the day before.
How's this for a gorgeous Aussie spin on an old standard? Raisins, sultanas and dates meet quandong, macadamias and bush tomatoes and let's just say the brolgas are merrily dancing.
This rich, boozy number is so traditionally Christmas cakey that it's practically singing carols as it bakes. Or perhaps we were just overly generous with the rum?
Studded with gin-soaked raisins and glace cherries this recipe for Dutch kersttulband is a much lighter version than a traditional Christmas cake.
The Italian take on Christmas cake is a welcome sight at this time of year. You can pick boxed versions of panettone everywhere, but it's much easier than you might think to make your own.
Another traditional 'bread' Christmas cake is the sugar-dusted German stollen. Originating from Dresden in the 15th century, it has been transformed from simple oat bread to a rich, buttery loaf.
A richly spiced chocolate cake covered in sumptuous chocolate icing is assembled like a gingerbread house. At last, a gingerbread house everyone will actually eat.
Ginger may feel like a 'wintry' spice and borders on too hot for an Aussie Christmas, unless... unless you put it in a sponge roll, smother it praline then top the lot with marshmallow icing. Dive in!
And here's the traditional French version of the bûche de Noël for you to tackle. Just quietly, it sure beats a fruitcake!
A gluten-free orange cake slides into the Christmas spirit when accompanied by pudding ice cream.
Now here's how to lighten things up - a fruity ricotta cheesecake. It's got all of your glacé fruit faves on board, without any of the traditional fruitcake heaviness.
The Sri Lankan version of Christmas cake is one to make for the fruit cake haters. It's much closer to a flourless cake or a brownie than a standard Christmas cake. But there's a catch: you need to make it now for flavours to develop and the cake’s moisture to increase.
If it's glacé fruit you're after, it's Bishop's cake you seek. AKA stained-glass window cake, when thinly sliced light penetrates the glacé fruit pieces, resembling the stained-glass windows of a church.
If you like your Christmas cakes crammed with spice and fruit, a torta negra Colombiana is the holiday ticket. It's spiked with both rum and port then dulce quemado or molasses provides its signature sweetness and colour.
Fast becoming Australia's own 'traditional' Christmas cake (hush Kiwis, we know), we couldn't finish the list without a pavlova. Crisp up your meringue, trowel on the cream and pile on your summer fruits. Happy Christmas!
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