Christmas cake in Harare

Christmas cakes at The Cake Studio start at $50 for a 6-inch rich fruit. The 8-inch is $65, the 10-inch is $80, and the 12-inch is $120. We start brandy-feeding from October, which is why the Christmas list opens in October and closes in mid-November. Cakes are baked to order in Madokero, delivered across Harare, and boxed for cabin luggage if family is flying home with one.

To get on the list, WhatsApp Beverley on +263 78 432 0632 with the size, whether you want rich fruit or light fruit, and the date you need the cake.

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TL;DR

• Sizes: 6", 8", 10", 12". From $50 / $65 / $80 / $120 in rich fruit.
• Two options: rich fruit (brandy-fed, traditional) or light fruit (paler, sweeter, gentler on younger guests).
• Order by mid-November for the December table. The pre-order list opens in October.
• WhatsApp +263 78 432 0632 to lock in the date and size.

When to order a Christmas cake in Harare

The cut-off date is the thing most people get wrong, so we put it first. Rich fruit needs brandy-feeding time. We start in October so the December cake is at its full flavour, which means we ask for orders by mid-November to be on the Christmas list.

Last-minute orders sometimes work for the small 6-inch through to mid-December, but the cake will not have had its full maturing time. It will still taste like a fruit cake. It will not taste like the fruit cake you have been thinking about since October.

Light fruit cake is more forgiving. There is no brandy feeding to wait on, so we can bake a light fruit with about a week's notice through December.

If you are ordering for staff or client gifts, plan one week earlier than the household cut-off. Volume baking and individual boxing take time, and the late-November diary fills up first.

Christmas cake prices and sizes

The Christmas cake is our standard fruit cake in a Christmas finish, so the prices match our fruit cake range.

If the December table is bigger than 40 guests, or there is an extended-family lunch where the cake is the centrepiece, a tiered rich fruit cake is the more sensible option. Wedding-tier fruit cakes start at $200 (2-tier) and step up by tier. Same recipe, brandy-fed the same way, finished for the season instead of for a wedding.

For the rest of the catalogue and how a fruit cake sits next to a signature sponge, see the full price guide.

Rich fruit or light fruit

The choice usually comes down to who is at the table.

Rich fruit is the traditional Zimbabwean Christmas cake. Dense crumb, dark colour, deep flavour from the brandy feeding, generous dried fruit and glacé cherry ratio. Once iced, it holds for weeks, travels well in a tin, and ages into something better than it was on the day it left the oven. It is what most people picture when they think Christmas cake.

Light fruit is the gentler option. Paler crumb, sweeter, less fruit-forward, no brandy. Children and guests who find rich fruit too heavy tend to prefer it. It does not keep as long, so we bake it closer to the date.

A common pattern: one rich fruit for the adults and a smaller light fruit (or a tray of cupcakes) for the kids. If that is the plan, mention it on the WhatsApp message and we will quote both at once.

Decoration and finish

The finish is where Christmas cakes look different from a year-round fruit cake. Four options we work in regularly:

• Marzipan and royal icing. The classic finish, ivory icing, piped detail, a ribbon. The most traditional look.
• Fondant covering with sugar holly and berries. Smoother surface, more decorative scope.
• A dusted-sugar finish with a wide ribbon. The quietest option, and the one that most often goes on a dinner table at a formal sit-down.
• Hand-painted festive design. Gold, deep red, or evergreen branches painted on a fondant base.

Sugar flowers, fondant covering, hand-painted finishes, and acrylic toppers are quoted on top of the base price. If you have a specific picture in mind, send it on WhatsApp and we will quote against it before you commit.

Christmas cakes for diaspora gifting

Rich fruit cake travels in cabin luggage and holds for weeks, so this has become a regular order from customers sending a cake to family in the UK, the US, South Africa, or Australia. The cake survives the flight, and it lasts long enough that the recipient can ration it through the holiday.

Three things to know if a traveller is flying with it:

1. Order three to four weeks before the flight so we can brandy-feed the cake properly. The shorter the lead time, the younger the cake leaves Harare.
2. We box it for travel and label the brandy-fed status, which makes the customs declaration easier if anyone asks.
3. The 6-inch and 8-inch sizes fit comfortably in a cabin bag. The 10-inch usually does too, but check the airline's dimensions before you commit to size.

If the recipient is in a country with strict food rules (Australia is the usual one), let us know on the WhatsApp message and we will package accordingly.

Corporate Christmas hampers and staff gifts

Small 6-inch fruit cakes work well as staff or client gifts. They sit on a desk, they travel home in a tote, and they last long enough that the recipient does not have to eat the whole thing the day they get it.

For 10 cakes or more, give us two weeks' notice. Volume pricing is quoted per order because boxing, labelling, and any branded ribbon all change the cost. WhatsApp the headcount, the per-cake size, and whether you want individual boxes or a single hamper, and we will come back with a written quote inside one business day.

For the full range of business-facing options (logo cakes, branded cupcakes, end-of-year boards), see corporate gifting. If you want to add a tray of cupcakes by the dozen alongside the fruit cakes for the office party, that goes on the same quote.

Delivery and pickup

Pickup at the Madokero studio (14305 Madokero Estates, Emagumeni Madokero Mall) is free. We hold the cake for collection on the date you tell us.

Harare delivery is a flat fee by zone, confirmed when you order. Outside-Harare delivery is quoted per arrangement based on the cake type and the journey. We have sent fruit cakes to Bulawayo, Mutare, Victoria Falls, and Masvingo before, so the route is rarely a problem; the cost is the part that needs confirming. For the current zone wording and the outside-Harare process, see delivery in Harare.

We deliver up to and including 24 December. Christmas Day itself is not a delivery day. If you want the cake on the table for Christmas Day lunch, book a 23 or 24 December slot, or collect on either of those days.

How to order a Christmas cake

Three steps:

1. WhatsApp +263 78 432 0632 with the size, the type (rich or light), and the date you need the cake.
2. We confirm the price and the lead time inside one business day, in writing.
3. A deposit holds the slot. Balance on delivery or pickup.

A walk-through of the full process is on how ordering works.

Cancellation: more than 48 hours before delivery is a full refund. Within 48 hours is a 50 percent refund. Within 24 hours there is no refund (the cake is already in production).

Order on WhatsApp