Last Minute Christmas Cake - LittleSugarSnaps (2024)

This marzipan cake makes a fantastically easy last-minute Christmas cake. It requires minimum effort and tastes fantastic. It is bursting with fruity, festive flavour and there’s no need for time-consuming decorations.

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We all have times when our best-laid plans get sidelined. If you find yourself caught out and short of time in the lead up to Christmas, this last-minute Christmas cake is the answer to your time issues.

Forget about making a traditional cake until another year and make this quick & easy marzipan cake instead.

If you like the look of this cake don’t miss my rum fruit cake. It has plenty of lovely dried fruit flavour but does not contain marzipan, so it’s a little less sweet than this cake.

Why this marzipan cake recipe is so good

The best time to bake this marzipan cake is Christmas Eve since it requires no maturing or feeding time and it stays fresh for at least 1 week. So it really is an ideal last-minute Christmas cake recipe to have to hand.

Tinned pineapple and grated marzipan folded through the batter both help to give the bake a very soft and moist crumb. And the latter really does accentuate the festive flavours in this cake wonderfully well.

Of course, the additional benefit of making this recipe is that there really is no need to spend extra time covering the cake in almond paste and icing. The marzipan baked directly into the cake is plenty. Any more would be overpowering.

Simply adorning this marzipan cake with some nuts and cherries or a selection of candied fruit works a treat here and takes no time at all. Wrap a bright red ribbon around this last-minute Christmas cake to complete the festive look.

Ingredients Notes

Tinned pineapple in juice is by far the better option for this cake than fresh pineapple. It is easy to chop and breaks down well during cooking to create a wonderfully moist and tender cake.

You’ll notice that I’ve used maraschino co*cktail cherries in this bake. I love their juicy flavour in cakes and they add a gorgeous burst of colour. If you don’t have any, feel free to add in extra glace cherries.

Step by Step Instructions

Honestly, this Christmassy marzipan cake requires just 30 minutes hands-on work and delivers a bake that is full of festive flavour in every bite. Let’s get started:

Step 1: Prepare the fruit by roughly chopping the pineapple, cherries, apricots and prunes then put them in a large bowl with the sultanas and raisins. Add grated orange & lemon zest, chopped crystalised ginger, coarsely grated marzipan and the rum. Use your hands to mix everything together until everything is evenly mixed and coated in the alcohol. Set aside

Step 2: Make the cake batter. Begin by creaming the butter and sugar together with electric beaters then add the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition. Sift the flour, baking powder and spices into the bowl and beat until just combined

Step 3: Tip the fruit into the bowl and stir with a large metal spoon to combine

Step 4: Spoon the cake batter into a prepared baking tin. Spread it out and level the top. Arrange the almonds and cherries (chopped in half) in a neat pattern on the top, then bake

Tips and FAQs

Expert Tips

• As always, I recommend greasing and lining your baking tin, regardless of whether or not it is non-stick. In this instance, since the bake is long, the lining helps to protect the outer edge of the cake from browning too much. I actually fold my parchment in half to create a double layer of protection around my cake
• If you want to leave out the prunes or apricots, that’s fine. Simply replace with an equal measure of alternative fruit
• Soaking of fruit for an extended time (e.g. overnight) is not necessary for this last-minute Christmas cake recipe. However, it won’t do any harm if you do soak the fruit before mixing and baking
• Though I do enjoy a ripe and fragrant fresh pineapple, for best results use tinned pineapple (in juice) for this recipe
• Check your cake 1 hour or so into the baking time and cover loosely with foil if the top looks as if it might brown too much
• Hot marzipan can look a bit like cake batter – when checking if the cake is fully baked double check by poking the skewer in a few places – if some areas come out clean then the cake is ready to come out of the oven

Frequently Asked Questions

More Christmas Baking Ideas:

With such an easy marzipan cake under your belt, there’s plenty of time for more festive baking. Take a look at my Christmas collection or get tempted by these reader favourites:

• Gluten-Free Mince Pies
• Christmas Wreath Biscuits
• Christmas Funfetti Shortbread Cookies
• Black Forest Yule Log
• Rudolph Rice Chocolate Krispie Treats

Have you made this last-minute Christmas cake? Did you enjoy it – let me know by leaving a comment and rating below. And I’d love to see how you decorated yours – post a picture on instagram and tag me #jane_littlesugarsnaps.

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