1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/ fan 160°C/ 350°F/ Gas mark 4. Line two fairy cake tins with red paper cases, Sift the flour into a large bowl with the baking powder, cinnamon, mixed spice and salt. Tip in the butter, sugar, eggs and almonds. Beat with a hand-held electric whisk, but don’t over-mix. Fold in the mincemeat. Divide the batter between the cases and bake for 15-18 minutes, or until the cakes spring back to the touch. leave in their tins for a minutes or two, then cool on a wire rack. (You can freeze them now).
2. Lay out all the cakes in front of you. Warm the jam slightly, push it through a sieve, then brush it lightly over each cake.
3. Roll the marzipan out to 4-5mm thick on a work top dusted with icing sugar. Using the smaller round cutter (it should measure the same as the top of the cakes), stamp out discs of marzipan and lay on top of each cake. Smooth to the edge. Repeat until all are covered. Brush lightly with sherry or cooled, boiled water. Repeat with the white sugarpaste, cutting out with the larger cutter (it should measure the same as the top of the cases) and smoothing it over the edges so the cakes are slightly domed. press a mint into each, attaching with royal icing if needed. leave overnight.
4. You can make the sugarpaste decorations in advance and store in a box, not in an airtight container or the fridge. To make the red sugarpaste decorations, roll out to about 2-3mm thick on a board dusted with icing sugar and cut out as you choose. to make buttons, cut out tiny rounds, indent the edge with a smaller cutter and make two holes with a cocktail stick. Attack all the sugarpaste decorations with royal icing. Pipe details with the white and red royal icing. Finally, thread the ribbon through the mints.

This recipe is from Seasonal Baking, published by W&N, photography by Dan Jones.