Alright, so I decided to tackle a nut-free fruit cake the other day. It’s always a bit of a mission, fruit cakes, but I was determined, especially since a few folks I know can’t do nuts and I hate for them to miss out during tea time. So, here’s how my little baking adventure went.
Getting All My Ducks in a Row
First thing I did was raid the cupboards. You know how it is, making sure I actually had everything. I needed the usual suspects for a fruit cake, minus the almonds or walnuts, of course. So, I laid out:
- Plain flour (all-purpose works fine)
- Brown sugar, the soft kind
- Butter, proper butter, not that spreadable stuff
- Eggs, large ones
- A good mix of dried fruits – I went for raisins, sultanas, currants, and some glace cherries because they look pretty. Chopped up some dried apricots too, for a bit of tang.
- Orange and lemon zest, can’t beat fresh zest.
- A bit of orange juice, to soak the fruit. Some people use tea or booze, but juice keeps it friendly for everyone.
- Mixed spice, and a touch of cinnamon.
I made sure to weigh everything out properly. Baking is a bit of a science, isn’t it? Not like a stew where you can just chuck things in.
The Soaking Saga
Next up, the fruit. I put all my chosen dried fruits into a big bowl. Then I zested the orange and lemon right over them, and squeezed in the juice. Gave it a good stir. I let this concoction sit for a good few hours. Honestly, I just covered it with a tea towel and left it on the counter while I got on with other bits. Some folks soak overnight, and that’s probably even better, but a few hours did the trick for me this time. The fruit plumps up lovely and gets all fragrant.
Mixing It All Together
This is where the real work starts, or the fun part, depending on how you look at it! I creamed the butter and sugar together until it was light and fluffy. My arm was getting a good workout with the wooden spoon, but you can use a mixer if you’re sensible. Then, I beat in the eggs, one at a time, adding a spoonful of the weighed flour with each egg to stop it curdling. It’s an old trick, but it works.
Once the eggs were in, I gently folded in the rest of the flour and the spices. You don’t want to overmix it at this stage, just enough to combine. Then, the star of the show – all that lovely soaked fruit. I tipped the whole bowlful into the batter and carefully stirred it all through. The kitchen started smelling amazing at this point.
Baking Time and the Waiting Game
I’d already greased and lined my cake tin. For fruit cakes, I always double line with baking paper, helps stop the edges from catching during the long bake. I spooned the mixture into the tin, making sure to level the top. Some people make a little dip in the middle because fruit cakes tend to rise more at the edges, but I just smoothed it over.
Then, into a preheated oven it went. Low and slow is the key for fruit cake. I set mine at around 140°C (that’s about 275°F for my friends across the pond). It baked for ages, seriously. I think this one took a good two and a half hours, maybe a bit more. I checked it after two hours by sticking a skewer into the middle. If it comes out clean, it’s done. If there’s wet batter, it needs more time.
The whole house smelled like Christmas, even though it isn’t! Once the skewer came out clean, I took the cake out of the oven and let it cool in the tin for about 20 minutes before carefully turning it out onto a wire rack to cool completely. This bit needs patience, if you try and move it too soon, it might break.
The Grand Finale (and the Taste Test)
And there it was! A lovely, golden-brown, nut-free fruit cake. Once it was totally cold, I wrapped it up. These things get better with a bit of age, but we did sneak a slice the next day. It was moist, packed with fruit, and had a lovely flavour from the spices and citrus. Success! No nuts, but absolutely no compromise on taste. It was a good baking day.
