Soak fruit overnight in sherry or brandy.
Place soaked fruit, water, butter, golden syrup and sugar into TM bowl and heat 7 min/100º/Reverse/speed 1.
Add bicarb soda mixed with 1 tablespoon boiling water and gently stir through with the spatula – the mix will froth up but should not spill over. Cool for 15 minutes in TM bowl.
Carefully add all remaining ingredients apart from the marzipan in the order listed then mix 10 sec/ Reverse/speed 4. Scrape down sides of the bowl and mix 5 sec/Reverse/speed 4.
Preheat oven to 160°C.
Fill eight, ½ cup capacity mini cake tins or moulds two-thirds full with cake mixture and place into the Varoma dish and tray. Pour remaining cake mixture into a bowl and rinse out TM bowl.
Pour 1L boiling water into TM bowl, set Varoma dish into position and steam cakes 20 min/Varoma/speed 4.
Transfer steamed cakes to a baking tray (still in the tin) and bake in the oven for 20 minutes at 160ºC.
Repeat cooking process with remaining cake mixture.
Once cakes have completely cooled, decorate with marzipan stars.
To make brandy butter:Place butter into TM bowl and chop 6 sec/speed 6. Add the icing sugar and blend 20 sec/speed 4. Whip 20 sec/Butterfly/speed 4. Remove Butterfly and add brandy a little at a time as you blend on speed 4 until well incorporated. Serve with all things Fruit Cake-y! Thanks to Jean Misko for this very Merry Christmix staple!