The traditional Christmas is always with this Christmas fruitcake. There are a million ways to make the fruit cake.
This is the simplest way you could make the cake within 3 hours on the same because the traditional fruit cake even takes months of preparation. The main part is to soak the dry fruits in Rum or Brandy for a minimum of 15 to 30 days earlier for Christmas, then it is made into a cake.
The cake I baked is the quicker way at the same time non-alcoholic cake. I used a stronger coffee instead of rum or brandy. Another different ingredient I used is the cocoa powder which is unusual in fruit cakes. I thought the coffee flavor will go well with the cocoa powder to give a chocolatey flavor to the cake and to give a dark color to the cake.
And it did taste good with a hint of chocolate flavor with the aroma of all spices mix and the dry fruits we used. I loved the nutty bits of nuts I used.
Believe me, it's worth trying. It reminds my childhood Christmas day back in India when my father used to bring fresh-baked plum cake and goodies from the bakery for Christmas It tasted the same.
Ingredients
- Dry soft prunes - 1cup(chopped)
- Raisins - 3/4cup
- Golden raisins - 3/4cup
- Cashew nuts - 3/4cup(chopped into big pieces)
- Almonds - 3/4cup((chopped into big pieces)
- Walnuts - 3/4cup(chopped into big pieces)
- Honey - 1/2cup
- All spices mix - 1tsp
- maple syrup - 1/2cup
- Strong coffee - 1/2cup
- Orange - 1(Zest and juiced)
- Cocoa powder - 2tbsp
- Unsalted butter - 1 1/2stick (softened)
- Light brown sugar - little over 3/4cup
- Molasses - 2tbsp
- Egg - 3large size
- Plain flour - 1cup
- Ground almonds flour - 1/2cup
- Baking powder - 1/2tsp
- Baking soda - 1/2tsp
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
- Heat prunes, raisins, golden raisins, cashew nut, almonds, walnuts, honey, coffee, orange (zest and juice), cocoa powder, butter, brown sugar, molasses, maple syrup in a large pan until it reaches a very gentle boil, stirring the mixture as the butter melts. Let the mixture simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and cool for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes now add the beaten egg, flour, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda, mix well with a spatula until the ingredients have combined.
- Then, carefully pour the fruit cake mixture into the lined cake pan.
- Transfer the cake pan to the oven and bake for around 2hours or until the top of the cake is firm. If you insert a knife into the middle of the cake when it's warm.
- Serve in cut pieces and you can store the cake for more than a week.
Cooking Tips
- We can pre-make the wet mixture and let the fruits and nuts soak.
- You do require some nerve the first time you bake the cake if you over bake the top part will be burned and the cake becomes hard rock.
- You can put a cut parchment paper on the top of the cake batter.
- And you can use any kind of nuts and dry fruits like cranberries, Currants, Sultanas, coconut chunks, chocolate chip, and pecan nuts.
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