Francine Bistro chef Brian Hill makes the cake with dried cherries, apricots, sultanas and dates. His version of the recipe calls for buttermilk, but his great-grandmother presumably used sour milk, an ingredient old recipes often called for in pre-refrigeration days.

Brian Hill, pictured in 2015 at Francine Bistro, makes his great-grandmother’s Christmas cake both at home and at the restaurant this time of year.

FOR THE CAKE:
Zest of 2 oranges
2 cups of dried mixed fruit
1⁄2 cup toasted hazelnuts
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

FOR THE GLAZE:
1⁄2 cup undiluted orange juice concentrate
1 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons Kirsch
3 tablespoons Grand Marnier

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and sugar a 9-inch springform pan.
To make the cake, grind together the zest, dried fruit and hazelnuts in a food processor or meat grinder. Cream the butter and sugar in a mixer until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs and mix thoroughly.
In a separate large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the creamed butter mixture, then add the fruit-nut mixture, buttermilk and vanilla.
Bake the cake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until a paring knife inserted into its middle comes out clean.
To make the glaze, combine ingredients. Glaze the cake while it is still in the pan and still hot. (The cake may crumble if it is removed from the pan hot.) Let the cake sit 1 day before serving.