Description
This easy Christmas Cake recipe yields a moist and richly flavored fruit cake perfect for holiday celebrations. Featuring a blend of soaked dried fruits, warm spices, and a touch of molasses, this cake is dense yet tender, traditionally served with pouring custard or decorated with marzipan and fondant for a beautiful festive centerpiece.
Ingredients
Scale
Fast Soaked Fruit
- 300g / 10 oz raisins
- 150g / 5 oz diced dried apricots, chopped 8 mm / 1/3″
- 75g / 2.5 oz mixed peel, diced 5mm / 1/5″
- 150g / 5 oz glace cherries, chopped 8 mm / 1/3″
- 180g / 6 oz dates, diced 5mm / 1/5″
- 1 cup + 2 tbsp apple juice, OR 1/3 cup brandy + 2/3 cup apple juice
Cake
- 120g / 8 tbsp unsalted butter, softened (1 US stick)
- 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil (or canola, peanut, grapeseed)
- 3 tbsp molasses or golden syrup
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 3 large eggs
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 2/3 cups plain flour (all-purpose flour)
- 3/4 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)
For Serving (Optional)
- 500ml / 1 pint pouring custard, homemade or store bought
White Christmas Cake Decoration (Optional)
- 250g / 8 oz “ready to roll” marzipan
- 250g / 8 oz “ready to roll” white fondant
- Cherries dusted with icing sugar
Other Decorating Options (Optional)
- Cherries or other fruit dusted with icing sugar
- Drippy white glaze (plain sweet glaze without lemon juice)
Instructions
- Fast Soaked Fruit Preparation: Place the dried fruit and apple juice or brandy mixture into a large microwavable container. Microwave on high for 1 1/2 minutes or until the liquid is hot. Stir well to coat all the fruit with the liquid, then cover and set aside for 1 hour to soak and cool.
- Preheat the Oven and Prepare Pan: Preheat your oven to 160°C / 320°F (140°C fan). Grease and line a 21–22 cm / 8–9″ round cake pan with baking paper, ensuring the sides are about 7 cm / 2.75″ tall for ample cake rise.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: Using an electric beater, beat the softened butter and dark brown sugar until smooth, creamy, and roughly doubled in volume — about 1 minute at speed 5.
- Add Oil and Molasses: Beat in the vegetable oil and molasses (or golden syrup) until fully combined, enriching the batter and deepening its flavor.
- Mix Spices and Leavening: Add salt, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and baking powder to the mixture. Beat until these are evenly incorporated.
- Incorporate Eggs: Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition just until incorporated to maintain the batter’s texture.
- Add Flour: Stir in the plain flour until mostly integrated into the batter.
- Fold in Fruit and Nuts: Gently fold in the soaked fruit mixture, including all the soaking liquid for moisture, and chopped walnuts if using, ensuring even distribution without overmixing.
- First Bake Stage: Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and cover the top with foil to protect it from over-browning. Bake in the oven for 2 1/2 hours.
- Second Bake Stage: Remove the foil and continue baking for another 30 to 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Start checking at 30 minutes to avoid overbaking.
- Cool the Cake: Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool in the pan for 20 minutes before transferring it to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Serving Suggestions: The cake is deliciously moist and flavorful eaten plain. For a festive touch, serve with warm pouring custard or proceed with decorating options below.
- Cutting Tips: To serve, either slice thin wedges or cut the cake into 2 cm (0.75″) strips, then cut those strips into smaller, bite-sized pieces.
- Decorating – Traditional White Christmas Cake: Roll out marzipan dusted with icing sugar into a disc large enough to cover the cake. Carefully drape it over the cake, smoothing pleats with a wet table knife. Repeat the process with rolled white fondant on top of the marzipan layer for a smooth, beautiful finish. Add cherries dusted with icing sugar as shown in the photo.
- Other Decorating Options: Top the plain cake with fresh cherries or other fruits dusted with icing sugar and wrap a ribbon around the cake. Alternatively, prepare and drizzle a plain white sweet glaze (omit lemon juice from a lemon glaze recipe) over the cake for a drippy effect.
- Serving with Custard: Serve the cake warm or at room temperature with homemade or store-bought pouring custard. Enhance store-bought custard by stirring in vanilla bean paste for added flavor and appeal.
Notes
- Dried Fruit: Use any combination of dried fruits totaling 855g / 30 oz finely chopped. The recipe prefers less citrus for balance. Mixed peel is crystallized citrus peel and should be chopped as directed; fresh peel is too strong and bitter.
- Juice/Brandy: This cake works well with or without alcohol. To use brandy, combine 1/3 cup brandy with 2/3 cup plus 2 tbsp juice. Apple juice is recommended for neutral flavor but other mild juices like pineapple or orange (for citrus note) are acceptable.
- Dark Brown Sugar: Gives the cake a rich, dark color. Light brown sugar can be used for a lighter cake appearance with more visible fruit.
- Molasses/Golden Syrup: Adds richness and depth of flavor. Interchangeable based on preference.
- Custard: Homemade pouring custard offers a luxurious mouthfeel. Pimp up store-bought versions by adding vanilla bean paste for flavor and vanilla specks.
- Storage: Cake can be kept for up to a month refrigerated in an airtight container and still remain moist. Generally, refrigerated storage of 2-3 months is acceptable, and it can be frozen for up to a year.
- Serving Size: Rich and dense cake yields 20-25 small servings when cutting into rectangles approx 2 cm wide.
- Decorating: Use a cake turntable for ease. Marzipan smooths the cake surface and adds subtle almond flavor. Fondant is more delicate and provides the polished final look but can be patched smoothly with a wet knife if cracked.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice (approx. 1/20th of cake)
- Calories: 350 kcal
- Sugar: 32 g
- Sodium: 150 mg
- Fat: 15 g
- Saturated Fat: 5 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 8 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 50 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 4 g
- Cholesterol: 75 mg
