Last Minute Spelt Christmas Fruit Cake

 

 

 

If you are after a simple, last minute Christmas fruit cake, you’ve come to the right place. This soft, fruity cake doesn’t need weeks of preparation. It is quick and easy to create, and makes a fabulous homemade Christmas gift.

This highly adaptable recipe can be made in a round or loaf tin, and there’s the option of using gluten free, all-purpose or spelt flour.

 

 

 

 

My last minute spelt Christmas cake

How to make a quick Christmas fruit cake

Adaptions for this cake

Storing a Christmas fruit cake

More Christmas recipes

 

 

 

 

 

 

My last minute spelt Christmas cake

I don’t even really like Christmas fruit cake (or copious amounts of dried fruit in general). But I loved this one. Seriously, I did. Glorious chunks of fruit in a dense, but yet soft, cake. There’s even the somewhat surprising addition of a touch of cocoa. No longer will you need to settle for a store-bought special if you’ve let it a little late to prepare this British festive classic.

I know, right. Ticks a lot of boxes. And so it should. I present you this simple last minute Christmas cake.

The original recipe is not mine. There’s not a cat in hell’s chance of me coming up with a fruit cake at such late notice. I wouldn’t even know where to start. Help came in the form of a recipe from Bear Naked Food, who in turn had adapted it from a chocolate fruit cake made by Nigella Lawson.  Hand on heart, it was one of the easiest recipes I’ve ever made.

 

 

 

 

 

 

How to make a quick Christmas fruit cake

The chances are, if you’ve stumbled across this recipe, it’s likely you’ve asked the Google gods, in a bit of a panic, to find you a recipe for a last minute Christmas fruit cake.

Now most of you probably already know that traditionally, a Christmas fruit cake takes time (lots of it) and dedication. But what if I tell you it doesn’t have to? That you can serve up a Christmas fruit cake to your guests, one that you made less than 24 hours earlier? Which tastes just as good as any fruit cake you’ve left in a dark cupboard for months?

A cake that you can adapt to suit your personal taste by adding (or omitting) nuts, alcohol or gluten and use pretty much any shape or size pan you like?

 

 

My adaptions for this quick Christmas fruit cake

The recipe is great as it is, but I did a little tweaking. It’s the perfect recipe to adapt to your own personal preferences. I’ve made this cake many times. In the past I’ve used both spelt flour and gluten free flour (with little discernible difference). I’ve baked it in round and loaf cake tins. 

Bear Naked Food’s recipe calls for calls for an 8″ (20cm) spring-form tin. For the first one I made, I used a 9½” (24cm) tin, which resulted in a thinner cake. Second time around, I made the fruit cake for friends and family, and divided the batter between two 9 x 5″ loaf tins. This time, I topped the cakes off with walnuts.

The alcohol in the original cake is optional. I didn’t have any, and plus, the first cake I made was for work colleagues, some who don’t drink. I used orange juice and it worked great. Next time though, will definitely add a little spirit to see how it alters the cake.

The fruit can also be varied, too. White dried mulberries are a new addition to my pantry, as shown in my date syrup tea loaf. These would work amazingly well in this cake. Or, add some candied clementine peel to complement the orange juice in the recipe. The world is your oyster with this simple Christmas cake recipe.

 

 

Storing a Christmas fruit cake

If well covered up (or stored in an airtight container) the cake will last a lifetime. Well, maybe not quite that long. It lasts even longer if it has alcohol in it. Don’t worry too much, though. This cake is so good that it will be snaffled long before you need to worry about it going bad.

While my cake is really a last minute option, if you plan a little more carefully than I do, you could absolutely bake it weeks in advance. In this case, you could use a method called seasoning to help preserve the cake. This is a traditional process of allowing the cake to mature over a period of weeks, also referred to as ripening or aging. 

Like all spelt cakes, it also freezes really well. I made a batch and had one in my freezer for almost a year. It tasted just as good as the day it was baked. Just make sure it’s well covered before popping it in the freezer.