English fruitcake

 

English fruitcake

English fruitcake has long traditions in England, but also in the rest of the world. The recipe has been found all the way back to Roman times. In England, this cake is mainly made for the Christmas celebration, but can of course be made for other seasons. It is juicy and hearty. It matures and lasts a long time, because it is soaked with alcohol or strong wine. The cake gets better the longer it is stored. In this recipe you have a recipe that can be eaten immediately, but it will still be better if it is stored for at least a week. It can be glazed with marzipan and powdered sugar, but here it is made a little lighter. The cake is glazed with a little apricot jam. It is a hearty cake anyway, so especially for Scandinavian palates, English fruitcake will be considered heavy and sweet anyway. Therefore, you only eat small slices of the cake, and thus it lasts a long way. A bit time consuming to bake, as you should start a day in advance. That considered, a simple cake to bake.

 

Ingredients

Marinated fruits:

1 dl dried cranberries
1 dl raisin
2 dl mixture of dried berries /fruit. Dates, apricots, oranges, etc.
1 dl Rum (dark or white)

 

The cake:

90 g spelled flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground dried ginger
½ teaspoon salt
60 g butter
80 g brown sugar
3 eggs
½ tablespoon lemon zest (only yellow part of the peel)
½ tablespoon orange zest (only orange part of the peel)
0.5 dl freshly squeezed orange juice
1 apple Granny Smith or other slightly sour apple (peeled and grated)
40 g sliced or chopped almonds
A pinch ground nutmeg
All marinated fruit with liquid (see above)

 

Liquid for soaking and storage:

1.5 dl sugar
1.5 dl water
1 dl dark Rum

 

Glazing:

3 tablespoons fine apricot jam
½ tablespoon of water
Nuts

 

Directions

Marinating fruit:

1. Start by cutting the mixture of large dried berries as apricots and dates.
2. Put all the dried fruit in a bowl.
3. Pour over Rum. Mix well and let the fruit rest.
4. Cover with plastic or similar, and leave them at room temperature. Let them marinate for 24 hours, or at least overnight.

 

The cake:

1. Put the butter in room temperature for a while until it gets soft.
2. In a medium-large baking bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, spices and salt. Sett aside.
3. Whisk butter and sugar together on high speed for 3 minutes in a new larger baking bowl, or until light and fluffy.
4. Reduce the speed to medium and add the eggs one at a time, whisking until each egg is incorporated. The mixture will look like it has separated, but that’s the way it should be.
5. Over low speed, add the flour mixture to the butter mixture. Run slowly until all the flour is absorbed and well mixed.
6. Add lemon and orange zest, fresh orange juice, grated apple, sliced ​​almonds, soaked dried fruit mixture (along with any liquid if it has not already been absorbed).
7. Stir the mixture with a large spatula, scrape the edges and bottom of the bowl several times, until all the ingredients are evenly incorporated. It is a very thick, heavy and soft mixture.
8. Transfer the dough to a loaf pan measuring 10 x 25 cm with a depth of 6 cm. I.e., a form that takes at least 13-15 dl of liquid.

 

Bake: 150 ° C for 75-90 minutes. Halfway turn the mould 180 degrees if your oven bakes unevenly. Use a baking stick to check that the cake is done. Although this is a heavy moist cake, it should be baked until the baking stick comes out dry. Leave the cake in the mould until it has cooled completely. Carefully remove the cake.

 

Liquid for soaking:

1. Boil water and sugar until the sugar has dissolved.
2. Allow to cool to below 70 ° C.
3. Then add in the Rum, and mix well.

 

Preservation and storage:

1. Soak the cake with the Rum liquid.
2. Soak lightly a large cheesecloth, or a thin kitchen towel with the liquid. (Rinse any kitchen towel in advance in cold water, so that any soap residue disappears). The cheesecloth should be slightly moist, not soaked when you wrap the cake, so you may have to squeeze out excess liquid. Wrap the cake tightly.
3. Cover the cake with wax paper or baking paper.
4. Wrap it then tightly in plastic.
5. Store in the refrigerator for up to 6 to 8 weeks (it can often be even longer). You can serve this cake right after it has cooled, but the flavours improve greatly with time, at least a week.
6. Unpack and soak the cheesecloth again once or twice a week.

 

Glazing and decoration:

If desired, you can top the fruitcake with a light apricot icing and nuts before serving. Note: It is not recommended to glaze the cake, if you want to store it longer before serving.

To prepare the icing:

1. Combine the apricot jam and water in a small saucepan, or a bowl in the microwave.
2. Let it boil until the icing is shiny and thin. If it is too thin for glazing, reduce it to the desired consistency. If it gets too thick, add some water.
3. Brush the top of the fruitcakes with apricot icing and garnish with whole nuts.

 

Served: Cut thin slices as with bread. It is a hearty, so you get many serving portions. It can be tasty to spread on a little salty butter.

 

Allergy: Gluten. Made easily gluten-free by using gluten-free flour. There is little flour in the cake, and this cake will be juicy regardless of the type of flour. Lactose free. High FODMAP

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Read more about English fruitcake or Christmas cake. See links in the article to other fruitcakes around the world. Christmas cake