Christmas fruit cake in June

Being baked on the winter solstice makes it Christmas cake doesn’t it?

Even when the winter solstice is in June? The cake can’t help being in the Southern hemisphere can it?

Whatever.

This isn’t ordinary fruit cake anyway. Its delicious.

And very easily made gluten, dairy and refined sugar free, if that’s what you need to do.

 

Honey sweetened Christmas cake with cranberries, hazelnuts, apricots and figs

• ½ cup olive oil
• 1/3 cup honey
• 250 g jar (a eensy bit more than ¾ cup) apple sauce
• 5 cups of mixed dried fruit (I used 1 cup each of cranberries, apricots and figs, and 2 cups of sultanas, the figs and apricots got chopped to about sultana size)
• ¼ cup brandy
• 3 large eggs, lightly whisked
• 1 ¼ cups gluten free SR Flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ½ cup hazelnuts, roughly chopped
• grated zest of 2 oranges and 1 lemon

1. Preheat the oven to 150ºC
2. Line the base of a cake tin with 4 circle layers of newspaper and then a sheet of baking paper. (I used the motoring section. I’m sure this is an important detail). Line the sides too. I used baking paper on the sides, not newspaper as well
3. In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt together the oil and honey. Add the apple sauce and dried fruit, stir to coat well.
4. Continue to cook on low, while stirring until slightly softened, about 5 minutes. Then add the brandy and stir some more.
5. Add the fruit mixture to the remaining ingredients and mix until very well combined.
6. Pour into the prepared cake tin and smooth out evenly.
7. Bake in the oven for 1 hour or until a skewer comes out clean once inserted.

Recipe adapted from Petite Kitchen

 

Delicious with a cup of tea in front of the roaring fire while listening to the rain.

Or as part of a cheese platter after that difficult jigsaw is finally complete…Its time to reclaim the coffee table!

Cheese and fruit cake you say?

Try it, I say!