A buttery dense cake that's studded with colourful dried papaya, cranberries and toasted hazelnuts, then soaked in a sweet lemon syrup. Have this as a dessert Christmas cake served with whipped cream.

Ingredients

Cake

• 250 grams butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup caster sugar
• grated rind 3 oranges and 3 lemons
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 8 eggs, separated
• 250 gram tub ricotta cheese
• 1 cup roughly chopped roasted nuts (hazelnuts or almonds)
• 1 cup Craisins and 1 cup diced papaya chunks
• ¾ cup self rising flour
• ¼ cup flour
• ½ tsp salt

Syrup

• juice 3 oranges and juice 3 lemons, 4 tbsp limoncello, ½ cup caster sugar

Lemon Glaze

• 2 cups icing sugar, sifted, grated rind one lemon and 6 tblsp juice

Topping

• ½ cup craisins
• ½ cup finely sliced papaya
• zest of 2 lemons

Method

1. Beat the butter, sugar, orange and lemon rind and vanilla essence until light and creamy. Beat in the egg yolks and ricotta cheese.Sprinkle over the nuts, craisins, papaya, sifted flours and salt.
2. Whip the egg whites until soft and add to the bowl. Fold all the ingredients together. Turn into a well-greased 23cm lined, loose-bottom cake tin.
3. Bake at 180ºC for 50-55 minutes until the cake is cooked, when tested with a skewer. It is a dense cake.While cooking prepare the syrup.
4. Squeeze orange and lemon juice and measure ½ cup combined. Place in a saucepan with the caster sugar. Stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved and simmer for 2 minutes. Skim off any froth that rises and stir in the limoncello.
5. Allow the cake to cool thoroughly in the cake tin, before transferring to an airtight container. This cake will keep well for 1 week.

To Decorate with Lemon Glaze

1. Mix the icing sugar with the lemon rind and juice to make a thin glaze. Stand the cake on a cake rack over a tray and slowly pour the glaze over the cake. Stand 5 minutes before sprinkling on the topping ingredients, Craisins, papaya and lemon rind if wished. Serve with whipped cream.