Holiday Fruit Cake

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A moist and easy to make fruit cake, perfect for the holidays! It is light, delicious and with wonderful flavors inside.

And the best is that kids can eat it too because it doesn't contain alcohol!

About the recipe

This is a simple cake with soaked dried fruits and nuts inside the batter. It also contains spices and flavors which create a nice holiday feeling in every bite. 

There is an optional chocolate glaze in the recipe that contributes for its wonderful taste and texture.

Unlike other fruit cake recipes, this one is quite easy to make, has a light texture and doesn't contain liquor. For that reason it is also suitable for kids.

What ingredients you need

You need simple and easy to find ingredients for this recipe:

• mixed dried fruits
• almonds
• black tea
• cornstarch or pudding powder
• a.p. flour
• brown sugar
• eggs
• olive oil
• baking powder
• rum extract
• lemon zest
• orange zest
• spices

The complete list of ingredients is below the post, in the recipe card.

Recipe summary

1. First you need to chop the bigger fruits and soak them in hot black tea and rum extract. Leave the fruits for at least one hour or overnight. 
2. The second step is to prepare the batter: mix the dry ingredients and little by little add the wet ones. Drain the fruits but keep the remaining liquid. Add it gradually to the mixture, until the consistency is just right (check the photos!). 
3. Beware that you may need to use less or more than the whole quantity of the liquid, depending on the type of dried fruits you have chosen and their dryness.
4. Add the nuts and the drained fruits at the end. Mix everything very well and pour it into a 7-8 inch round pan, lined with parchment paper.
5. Bake for about 50 minutes at 350º F/ 180º C. Test with a wooden skewer at several places before deciding if the cake is ready.
6. After the cake is completely cool you can pour the chocolate glaze on top. Or you can skip it: this cake is great even plain.

Recipe tips

• The most important part of the preparation here is to get the right batter consistency. Too thick and the cake won't be moist enough, too runny and you may not be able to bake it properly.
• Therefore it is imperative to drain the fruits and add the liquid to the batter little by little, before them. Don't worry if the batter is still thick at the end: gradually add a few tablespoon of water.
• The fruits and the nuts need to be added at the end, after you have validated the batter consistency.
• The second important part is to ensure proper baking. The moist fruits inside the batter make the baking process a bit longer and uneven, compared to other cakes. For that reason you have to check with a skewer in several parts for readiness. 

Variations

• You can bake this cake in different types of pans, depending on the result you are looking for. It can be prepared in a 9 x 5 inch / 22 x 12 cm loaf pan, for example.
• You can use any kind of dried fruits you like: figs, apricots, cherries, raisins, dates, cranberries, blueberries and even candied fruits. Just make sure you chop the large ones so all are a similar size.
• Almonds are my preferred nuts for this cake but you can use also walnuts or hazelnuts. 
• If you decide to skip the nuts, increase the quantity of the dried fruits.
• Don't want to serve black tea to your little kids? Soak the fruits just in hot water! The cake will be still very nice.

This is a very easy fruit cake recipe that will satisfy everyone's sweet tooth for the holidays. It is also the perfect edible Christmas gift: just place the slices in a nice box! 

I would be happy if you share with me your opinion or experience with this recipe. Don't hesitate to comment below or to tag me in Instagram.

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5 from 2 votes

Holiday Fruit Cake

Course Dessert

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 50 minutes mins

Servings: 8

Author: Daniela Lambova

Ingredients

For the cake:

• ▢ 1 cup/ 165 g dried fruits, the larger chopped
• ▢ 1 cup / 240 ml hot tea, see notes
• ▢ ¼ cup/ 40 g cornstarch , or unsweetened dry pudding mix
• ▢ 1 ⅔ cups/ 200 g a.p. flour
• ▢ zest of 1 lemon, I used 1 teaspoon dried lemon peel
• ▢ zest of 1 orange, I used 1 teaspoon dried orange peel
• ▢ 2 teaspoon rum extract
• ▢ 2 teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ 2 large eggs
• ▢ ½ cup / 50 g almonds, chopped
• ▢ ¾ cup/ 150 g brown sugar
• ▢ ⅓ cup/ 80 ml olive oil, extra virgin
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ▢ 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ▢ ⅓ teaspoon ground nutmeg

For the glaze:

• ▢ 3 tablespoon cornstarch
• ▢ 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• ▢ 1 cup milk
• ▢ 1-2 tablespoon sugar

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Instructions

Cake:

• Place the dried fruits in a medium bowl and pour the hot tea on top. Add the rum extract and mix. The fruits should be submerged in the water.
• Leave them covered with a lid for at least 1 hour or overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350º F/ 180º C. Line a 7-8 inch/ 18-20 cm cake pan with a circle of parchment paper. Grease very well inside the pan.
• Pass the fruits through a fine mesh sieve and keep the remaining water.
• Place the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl: flour, starch, baking powder, brown sugar and spices. Whisk to blend.
• Add the eggs and the oil and continue whisking. Gradually add the liquid from the soaked fruits. You need to obtain a not too thick batter consistency (check the photos). If the liquid is not enough, add a few tablespoons of water. If it is too much, don't use it all.
• Add the lemon and orange peel and mix again. At the end add the soaked and drained fruits and the chopped nuts. Fold them gently into the batter with a rubber spatula.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 50 minutes or until the top is golden brown and a wooden skewer inserted in several parts of the cake comes out clean.
• Let the cake cool completely at room temperature before pouring the glaze on top.

Glaze (optional):

• In a small bowl combine the starch, cocoa powder with some sugar to taste and 2-3 tablespoon milk. Mix very well until smooth.
• Heat the rest of the milk in a small saucepan until it starts simmering. Remove from the pan and lower the heat. Pour the pudding mixture (make sure it is runny enough so it doesn't form lumps right away). Mix very well.
• Return the saucepan to the heat and stir energetically for about 1-2 minutes, until the mixture thickens.
• Pour the hot pudding on top of the cake.
• Serve immediately or within several minutes.

Notes

• Store the glazed cake for 3-4 days, covered in the fridge. Cake without glaze can stay covered at room temperature.
• Tea: if the cake will be given to small kids, use just hot water to soak the fruits.
• The quantity of liquid needed for the batter may vary, depending on the type of fruits and their dryness. For that reason you need to drain the soaked fruits and add the remaining liquid into the batter gradually.
• Pan: you can also use a 9 x 5 inch/ 22 x 12 cm loaf pan or any other pan of similar size.

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