Eggless Christmas cake (without butter)

Good evening readers. So, how’s your Christmas preparations going on? Most of you might be busy finishing off your last minute bakes, packing for your annual vacation and so on and so forth. Well, we shall be here in Chennai during these days. Actually, but for the last 3 years, we have always enjoyed a beautiful vacation during Christmas holidays. But I guess we will have to wait for February for my daughter’s vacation to start. Anyways….

Here is a simple yet very very moist and flavourful version of an eggless Christmas cake. Yes, you guessed it right. Actually I am a big fan of these rich fruit cakes and there is always this yearning in me to make it better and better. Now when I think of it, my old recipes need a lot of improvement 🙂 This one slice beautifully, is very soft, not at all crumbly, yet has a beautiful colour and is very mildly sweet. Please use all ingredients at room temperature. Always use good quality and fresh ingredients. I have used a 240 ml cup. Be very very careful when you make the caramelized sugar.

Please do share your feedback and suggestions in the comments section or you can email me at pradeepa.nair0@gmail.com

Happy holidays and wish you all a very merry Christmas.

Ingredients:

• All purpose flour 150 gm
• Salt a pinch
• Baking powder 1 tsp
• Baking soda 1/2 tsp
• Cinnamon powder 1 tsp
• Clove powder 1/4 tsp
• Nutmeg powder 1/4 tsp
• Ginger powder 1/2 tsp
• Sugar 75gm
• Jaggery 75 gm
• Water 3/4 cup
• Orange juice 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp
• Milk 60 ml (1/4 cup)
• Oil/melted butter 60 ml (1/4 cup)
• Curd 1 tbsp
• Vinegar 2 tsp
• Vanilla extract 1 tsp
• Orange zest 1 tbsp
• Dark treacle 2 tbsp
• Almonds 25 gm
• Cashew 25 gm
• Mixed candied peel 25 gm
• Cranberries 25 gm
• Black raisins 25 gm
• Yellow raisins 25 gm
• Black currant 25 gm
• Dates 25 gm
• Glazed cherries 25 gm
• Apricots 25 gm

Method:

• Chop the dried fruits into small pieces and soak them in the orange juice for at least 24 hours. If soaking in alcohol, it may be kept at room temperature. But refrigerate it if using fruit juice.

• Chop the almonds, candied peels and cashews into bite size pieces. No need to soak the nuts, candied peels and glazed cherries.

• In a heavy bottom sauce pan heat half a cup of granulated sugar. Swirl the pan in between. Do not use a ladle.
• Once the sugar melts and becomes dark golden in colour, carefully add around three fourth cup of boiling water and mix gently. Be very very careful during this step.

• Now to this mixture, add the jaggery and simmer for 3-4 minutes. Switch off the flame and cool it.
• Sieve the flour, spice powders, salt and the leavening agents two to three times.

• Mix the milk, vinegar, curd and oil and whisk together till everything is a homogeneous mixture.
• Add the extracts and orange zest.

• To the caramelized sugar syrup, add the milk mixture and combine.

• Preheat the oven at 150-160 degree Celsius for ten minutes with both the rods and fan mode on settings.
• Slowly, fold in the flour mixture and add the soaked fruits, nuts, candied peels and glazed cherries. Now add the treacle and mix.

• Do not overmix. The batter was around 850 grams.
• Pour this batter into a prepared cake tin (8 inch round or 2 tins of diameter 6 inches) and tap on the counter to remove air bubbles if any.

• Bake for 45-55 minutes or till a toothpick or screwer inserted into the centre comes out clean. The baked cake was around 415 grams.
• Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool on a wire rack. De mould and cool completely. Cover and store in a dry place and slice the next day.

• Serve it to your family and friends. Merry Christmas.

Notes:

• If you soak the fruits in alcohol, you may brush the cake with the alcohol. You may use good quality rum or brandy.
• Any spice powder can be omitted depending on your taste. You may add cardamom powder too.
• You can omit treacle and add a tablespoon of orange marmalade.
• You may opt to decorate the top of your cake with cashews, glazed cherries or raisins or cranberries. But first soak the raisins and cranberries in some orange juice before placing them on the top of the batter so that they don’t dry out during baking.
• You can check the recipe for dark treacle by clicking here.