Make a stock syrup by boiling the caster sugar and water together for 5 minutes and once cool add the rum and sherry.

Use approximately half the syrup to soak the dried fruits, nuts, cherries and peel for a minimum of 24 hours or up to a week in the fridge, stirring every day so the fruit absorbs the syrup.

Keep the remaining syrup in the fridge for feeding the cake over the coming weeks.

Line the base and sides of a 9 inch round tin with greaseproof paper, a little higher than the rim of the tin.

Beat the butter and muscovado sugar together until well mixed and lighter in colour.

Add the treacle and mix well.

Slowly add the beaten eggs, mixing well between each addition.

If the mixture starts to curdle when you add the eggs, add a tablespoon of the flour.

Sieve together the flour, salt and spices and fold into the mix.

Add the soaked fruits and stir so the fruit is evenly distributed through the mix, but don’t over mix.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and level the mix.

Bake at 140 C/gas mark 1 for 4 - 4 3/4 hours until cake feels firm to the touch and a skewer pushed into the centre of the cake comes out clean.

Allow to cool in the tin, then pierce the cake at intervals with a skewer and feed with a little of the reserved stock syrup.

Wrap in foil and store in a cool dry place.

Feed the cake weekly in the run up to Christmas