Storing Certosino Cake

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Nigellla's Certosino cake (from HOW TO BE A DOMESTIC GODDESS) is a spicy fruit cake that is based on the Italian fruit cake called certosino, a speciality from Bologna. Nigella has added apple to her version of the cake to make it slightly lighter and moister than the original.

Once the cake has been decorated with candied fruits and cut into, it should keep for about a week in an airtight container in a cool place. You can make the cake a couple of days ahead of that and wrap it (undecorated) in greaseproof paper or baking parchment (parchment paper) and then foil and leave it in a cool place. Decorate the cake with candied fruits on the day you want to serve it. Don't wrap the cake directly in foil as the foil can react with the dried fruits to give an odd taste. You can also freeze the undecorated cake for up to 3 months. Wrap it tightly in a double layer of food wrap and a layer of foil before freezing. To thaw the cake, unwrap it and put it on a wire rack at room temperature for 3-4 hours. Make sure that the cake has come to room temperature before you decorate it.