Photography: John Paul Urizar. Styling: Michele Cranston.
We are honoured that Shiranie Christie-David has shared her family recipe for Sri Lankan Christmas cake with The Weekly. Shiranie’s fusion Christmas cake recipe is a delicious mix of Australian fruit and South-East Asian spices.
When Shiranie arrived in Sydney from Sri Lanka in the 1980s, The Weekly taught her what it was to be Australian. Since then, her son Shaun has repaid a nation’s generosity with a million free meals for the hungry through Plate it Forward and the model of “buy one, give one”.
“Food and family were the first things we missed, those tastes of home,” Shiranie says of her early days in Sydney. “But Australians made us feel very welcome. And The Weekly opened our eyes to Australia, the people and the food.”
Note: The fruits and nuts will need to be soaked 5 days ahead of baking. This Sri Lankan Christmas cake is best when left to rest for 2 months for the flavours to develop.
Ingredients
Method
MACERATED FRUIT & NUTS Prepare this at least 5 days in advance. Chop the pumpkin, ginger and chow chow preserves, mixed peel, sultanas, raisins and cashews into small, uniform pieces. Place into a large airtight glass jar. Add the brandy, rum, honey, jam, rose and almond essences, vanilla extract and spices. Mix thoroughly, seal the jar tightly, and leave contents to steep at room temperature for at least 5 days. Shake or stir once daily.
CAKE BATTER Preheat your oven to 140°C. Line a deep baking pan (24cm x 30cm top measurement) with 3-4 layers of baking paper, extending above the rim to prevent the cake from scorching.
In a dry frying pan over low heat, gently toast the semolina for about 10 minutes, stirring regularly, until warm and fragrant. Do not allow it to brown. Remove the pan from the heat immediately. Add the cubed butter directly into the warm semolina, stirring until completely melted and smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, beat the caster sugar and egg yolks with an electric mixer until the sugar is dissolved and light bubbles appear. In a separate, squeaky-clean bowl using clean beaters, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form.
Alternately fold spoonfuls of the semolina-butter mixture and the macerated fruit mixture into the beaten egg yolk mixture. Fold in the cherries until well distributed. Gently fold in the whipped egg whites gradually using a light hand so as not to deflate the mixture.
Pour the Cake Batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake for about 3 hours. The cake is ready when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
As soon as you remove the cake from the oven, brush the top generously with brandy. Allow the cake to cool completely in the pan, preferably overnight.
Wrap the cake tightly in baking paper and foil, then store in an airtight container. Let it mature in a cool place for up to 2 months before cutting.
Sri Lankan Christmas cake ingredient tips
The preserves are the candied flesh of pumpkin, ginger and choko (chow chow) in syrup. Preserves and coarse semolina (rula) are available in Sri Lankan supermarkets.
Meet Shiranie & Shaun Christie-David
Shiranie arrived in Sydney from Sri Lanka in the 1980s. Since then, her son Shaun has repaid a nation’s generosity through Plate it Forward.
Read their full interview with The Weekly here.
How to serve Sri Lankan Christmas cake
This is a dense, rich cake, so it works well as an edible gift. Cut small pieces and wrap in a layer of baking paper and then cellophane, tying with a ribbon.
If you like, you can top the cake with marzipan. First, rough the cake up with a fork and then flatten with a rolling pin before topping with marzipan and cutting into very small pieces.
What to do with leftover egg whites
The remaining egg whites can be used to make a pavlova. Or freeze them for up to 3 months. See more ideas here.
