ingredients
- 300g dried fruit (use your favourites, we used roughly chopped prunes, apricots and dates plus sultanas and cranberries)
- 150ml plant based milk
- 50g coconut oil, melted
- 120g Sweet Freedom CINNAMON SYRUP
- zest 1 orange
- 100ml fresh orange juice (roughly 2 oranges)
- 1 grated beetroot or carrot grated, roughly 75g (optional)
- 100g chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)
- 200g self raising flour
- 100g ground almonds
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ¼ tsp baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp ground allspice / mixed spice
Forgotten to make the Christmas cake? Don't panic... this one comes together in one bowl and bakes the same day. Dried fruit, orange and warming spices are sweetened with our CINNAMON SYRUP, and a grated beetroot or carrot keeps it lovely and moist. It's even better the next day.
make
- If there's time, soak the fruit for a few hours or overnight in 100ml Earl Grey or fruity tea. Don't worry if not, it will still be lovely.
- Preheat your oven to 170°C and line your cake tin.
- In a large bowl mix together the coconut oil, CINNAMON SYRUP, orange juice and zest.
- Stir in the grated beetroot or carrot, and the rest of the ingredients.
- Pour into your cake tin.
- Bake for 1½ to 2 hours until a skewer poked into the middle comes out clean. If the top is browning before the middle is cooked, cover loosely with a piece of baking paper.
- Let it sit for about 10 minutes, then remove from the tin and allow to cool.
Decorated or plain this is delicious... in the pic you can see ancient and much loved ornaments that come out year after year!
tips & swaps
- Leave out the nuts if you prefer, the cake works just as well without them.
- Quick decorating: skip the icing and drizzle with CHOC SHOT Orange, then scatter over orange zest.
last minute Christmas cake FAQs
Can I use different dried fruit?
Yes, any mix works as long as it adds up to 300g. We love prunes, apricots, dates, sultanas and cranberries.
Can I make it without beetroot or carrot?
Yes, it's optional. The cake will be a little less moist, so don't overbake it.
Perfect with a mug of our hot spiced apple. Got a jar of mincemeat to use up? Try our mince pie crumble bars.
