“Christmas gives us the opportunity to pause and reflect on the important things around us – a time when we can look back on the year that has passed and prepare for the year ahead.”
-David Cameron
November slipped away too soon and it is already the end of December.
It rained last week and we had a mild snowfall. Next few days were clear and sunny. While we relished the beauty and tranquility of the season, we also went to the town to shop for our fruitcake. Every December, it is a ritual in our home to bake a fruitcake.
This year we baked a vegan fruit cake.
The fruits were measured and chopped. Raisins, golden raisins, black currants, figs, apricots, and cherries were chopped. With everyone participating in the baking, there was a lot of din, laughter, and fun. Some fruit bits were stealthily popped into the mouth. The pan was prepared perfectly and the bowl was licked clean after pouring the batter into the pan.
A carnival of scents wafted through as the cake baked.
The cake was brushed with rum all over and stored for a week.
My son trudged up the narrow trail through the oak forest to get a few branches of the Fir Tree. While the daughter collected the pine cones. In the evening, children arranged lights around their Christmas Tree.
We enjoyed the slices of boozy cake overloaded with fruit bits. Joy, warmth, togetherness, and love - this is the true spirit of Christmas.
Vegan Christmas Cake | Vegan Fruit Cake
Recipe adapted from bbcgoodfood
Ingredients
- 1 kg of mixed dry fruits (mix of raisins, figs, apricots, cherries, black currants)
- ¼ cup candied citrus peels
- Juice of two oranges
- 150 ml rum, plus extra for feeding
- 200 grams coconut oil
- 200 grams brown sugar
- 4 tablespoons flax meal
- 150 ml water
- 175 grams plain flour
- 100 grams ground almonds
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a large deep pan/wok, take dried fruits, candied peels, rum, sugar, coconut oil and set over medium heat. Stir continuously and bring it to a boil. Let simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off the heat. Leave it cool.
- In another large bowl, whisk together flour, ground almonds, baking powder, ground cinnamon, and ground cloves. Keep aside.
- Grease one 9 inches or bigger round cake pan. Line the bottom with a double sheet of parchment paper. Line the sides. Wrap a double layer of newspaper on the outside and secure it with a string or a tape. Preheat oven to 150 degrees C.
- Stir flax meal with 150 ml water. Leave to sit for 5 minutes until thick and gel-like.
- Mix this to the cooled fruit mixture. Add orange juice. Mix well.
- Now add flour mix. Stir well so that there are no pockets of flour.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Level the top and bake for 2 hours. Tent with a foil if the top is browning too fast. Check with a skewer for doneness.
- Remove the cake from the oven. Poke holes with a skewer. Spoon over 2 tablespoons of rum. Leave the cake to cool completely in the pan.
- Peel off the parchment paper. Brush the top, bottom, and sides with rum. Wrap in a cling film. Brush with alcohol every fortnight.
My notes: I have made a few changes in the recipe due to the availability of the ingredients and our taste preferences. The cake turned out moist and boozy and very delicious.