This easy fruit cake is not the traditional or classic Christmas cake and the fruits are soaked in a special mead! It is less rich as it has less candied fruit, alcohol and can be had the very same day that it is baked.
Christmas, a special time of the year! With temperatures slowly plummeting, days becoming shorter, streets and houses brightly lit up with twinkling lights, we all look forward to the holidays, family and food. The waft of fresh bakes, delicious smells of warm home-cooked food is so inviting and as if it wraps you with warmth and love!
Fruit cake is one of my favourite cakes, I would gladly have it any time of the year. It takes me back to my childhood days when we devoured fruit cakes from the one and only bakery in our part of the town.
Jump to RecipeI first made this special cake a few years back and have not stopped since then. You can have this cake any time of the year with your afternoon teas or when you want to!
Soak in Suktinis Mead Nectar
What makes my fruit cake special is this wonderful Lithuanian mead called Suktinis! Suktinis Mead Nectar is a flavourful beverage with 50% alcohol by volume, named after the popular folk dance of Lithuania. It is produced by maturing a mix of natural honey, poplar buds, acorns, cloves, juniper berries, blackcurrant and raspberry juice. I had never heard of this drink before and this gorgeous bottle was a gift from a friend.
I soaked my candied fruits in this flavourful mead and have loved it! And ‘tbh’ I had only done so ’cause the first time I baked this cake, the only alcohol at home was this lovely bottle of mead nectar! But this is absolutely optional, if you do not like alcohol in your cake, you may simply add the candied fruits and peels and it will still be Special! You may soak them in orange juice flavoured with cinnamon and spices and will smell heavenly.
If you have plans of baking A cake this winter, why not try this delectable fruit cake for your family and friends.
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Recipe
Easy Fruit Cake
Equipment
- 9 inch loaf tin
- Mixing Bowls
- Hand Mixer
- Spatula
- Measuring spoons, cups and scale
Ingredients
- 200 g Plain flour
- 50 g ground almond
- 150 g candied mixed peel
- 120 g candied red cherries
- 50 g raisins or sultanas
- 3-4 tbsp Suktinis mead or any other alcohol such as brandy rum or sherry (optional)
- 120 g butter
- 120 g caster sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 60 ml milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- zest of 1lemon
Instructions
- A day or two before the day you bake the cake, soak the candied peels and fruits in Suktini mead or the alcohol of your choice and leave it at room temperature for a day or two. Stir the fruit mix few times occassionally during the day. Remember to leave the butter out of the fridge the night before!
- When ready to bake, pre-heat oven to 180 deg C/ 160deg Fan. Line a 9″ loaf tin with baking paper.
- Now on to the cake mixture. In a bowl, sift together plain flour and 1tsp baking powder. Add the ground almond, salt and lemon zest and mix well.
- For preparing the cake batter, you can either use an electric mixer, electric hand mixer or a wooden/silicone spatula along with a wire whisk. I have tried with both electric hand mixer as well as spatula and whisk and on both occassions the results have been the same. Benefit of using a spatula and whisk is that you’ll get an excellent exercise for your arms! Now choice is yours.
- In a large bowl, beat butter and caster sugar until it is light and fluffy.
- Add the 3 eggs, one at a time and beat well after each addition. Add the vanilla extract and beat well.
- Now tip in the candied peel and fruits along with the juices, mix well.
- Next add, half of the flour mixture and mix well making sure there are no lumps or dry flour.
- Add 60ml milk and remaining flour mix. Mix well. Your fruit cake batter is now ready.
- Pour the batter in the prepared loaf tin and smooth the surface with a spatula.
- Bake in the pre-heated oven, in the middle shelf for about 50-60minutes or until it is cooked. To check if it is baked, insert a toothpick in the centre of the cake and pull it out. If the toothpick comes out clean without any wet cake batter sticking to it, your cake is ready!
- Remove the tin from the oven and let it cool in the tin for about 10minutes.
- Take the cake out of the tin and let it rest for atleast an hour on a wire rack. You can have this cake the same day. Store it in a cake tin, wrapped with parchment paper in a cool dry place. This cake will store well for at least a week.
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