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Brimming with dried fruit, almonds and glace and cherries, this gluten-free Christmas cake is just as delicious as a traditional cake.
Ground ginger and mixed spice add a delicate festive flavour, while the addition of milk ensures the cake stays moist – all too often a problem when it comes to gluten-free bakes.Speedier than following a classicChristmas cake recipe (opens in new tab), this gluten-free version takes under two hours to bake. Remember that gluten-free cakes and biscuits tend to go stale more quickly than their regular counterparts, so it’s best to eat this one within a couple of weeks.
Ingredients
For the gluten-free Christmas cake
350g mixed dried fruit
100ml brandy or orange juice
150g butter, softened
150g soft light brown sugar
3 eggs, beaten
Zest of 1 large orange
50g blanched almonds, chopped
50g glace cherries, halved
2tsp vanilla extract
150g gluten-free plain flour
1½tsp gluten-free baking powder
2tsp ground mixed spice
1tsp ground ginger
100ml milk
For the icing
5-6 tbsp apricot glaze or sieved apricot jam
750g white marzipan
1kg of packet white sugarpaste
WEIGHT CONVERTER
grams
to
cups
Method
Place the dried fruit in a bowl with the brandy or orange juice and leave to soak for 2 hrs or overnight.
Preheat the oven to 170°C/325°F/Gas Mark 3. Grease an 18cm round deep cake tin and line the base and sides with a double thickness of baking paper.
Place the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat together until pale and creamy. Gradually beat in the eggs, adding a little of the flour if the mixture begins to curdle. Add the soaked fruit, orange zest, almonds, cherries and vanilla extract.
Sift together the flour, baking powder and spices and fold into the mixture with the milk. Spoon the cake mixture into the prepared tin and level the surface.
Bake for 1½-1¾ hrs until golden, firm to the touch and a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 15 mins then turn out onto a wire rack and leave to cool completely. Finally, ice your Christmas cake (opens in new tab) with apricot jam, white sugar paste and marzipan.
Top tip for making this gluten-free Christmas cake
Mix it up by replacing half the dried mixed fruit with finely chopped dried apricots and dates.
Gluten-free scones
