Fruitcake – Yes please!





A mere mention of the word “fruitcake” during holiday season evokes strong sentiments among people, they love it or hate it, at least on this matter we all seem to have a decision made . Regardless of the sides we take on this cake, we are strong in our convictions, nurturing a love that grows deeper over the years or a loathing that gets rooted as time passes. I am from a part of India where fruitcake was a cake for all seasons once not too long ago, my first engraved cake visuals in memory are of these cakes covered in hard royal icing, decorated with icing or foil flowers and silver dragees. As a kid my tested method for relishing this goody during Xmas season was to first start with the inside of the cake reserving the candy like icing pieces and flowers for those increasingly uninteresting days leading to school reopening. Even though there are many trendy confections in vogue in Kerala right now, fruitcake still is a xmas time favorite. From the ceremonious soaking of dried fruits to hosting cake melas, bakeries big and small celebrate the goodness of this cake as holiday season approaches.

Baking cakes and yeast breads enriched in dried fruits and nuts is a long standing Xmas tradition spread across the globe with recipes reflecting regional ingredient preferences. Even though the exact place of origin of a rich fruitcake is a matter of debate there are certain elements tying all recipes for this cake together, a high fruit to flour proportion and an emphasis on aging the cake are the most obvious. An Indian Xmas fruit cake-Kerala style is not a dense candied fruit brick, there is more “flour space” (you know what I mean!) in the cake. Instead of candied peels, fresh grated rinds are used with an optional addition of marmalade or orange juice to enhance the taste. Allspice is a no-no in the recipe, but there are other usual fruitcake spices present along with hints of shajeera. Molasses is substituted with caramel, soaking in liquor is not generally practiced, although these cakes are aged for at least a couple of days.

Recipes from fellow fruitcake aficionados, RP and Annita
This cake needs to be aged for a couple of days. In 2-3 days, texture softens and flavors blend very well together. I usually bake this cake two weeks ahead of Xmas and forget all about it till Christmas Eve.

The following recipe is for an eight-inch round/square/loaf cake.

Soaking dry fruits

Golden raisins ¾ cup
Dried currants ¾ cup
Dried apricots chopped – 14 (optional, substitute with a dry fruit of your choice)
Dried cherries – ¼ cup
Orange juice – 1 cup
Nutmeg powder – 1/4 tsp
Cloves - 3
Honey (optional)- 2tsp
Rum – 4 tbsp
Grated orange rind – 2 tsp

Warm orange juice, add all the other ingredients and mix well, keep in an airtight container for at least 12 hours or up to 2-3 days

Making caramel


Sugar – 1 cup
Water – 1 tbsp + 4 tbsp
Butter – ½ tsp

Mix 1 cup sugar with 1 tbsp water, heat in a thick bottomed pan, till the color starts changing to a place shade of golden brown. Stir well from this point on, till the color turns to a dark golden brown (In this step you will have to go a little bit farther than a regular golden brown caramel stage)
Add ½ tsp butter and 4 tbsp water, mix very well, remove from heat, cool and store (refrigerate for up to a week).

Ingredients for the cake

Cake flour – 2 ¾ cup
Baking powder – 2 tsp
Confectioners sugar – 1 cup
Butter – 1 cup
Eggs, beaten – 5
Cinnamon – A pinch or two
Shajeera , finely ground- 3/4 tsp
Vanilla essence – 1 tsp
Soaked dried fruits – from step 1
Caramel – from step2
Cashew nuts chopped and coated with 1 tsp of flour- ¼ cup


Preheat oven to 300 degree F , butter and flour the cake pan ( PAM for baking saves time), line the bottom of the pan with parchment/ wax paper. Sift cake flour with baking powder and mix in spice powders. Cream butter with sugar, add eggs, vanilla essence, caramel, and beat well till the mixture is creamy. You can reduce the amount of caramel to get a lighter color for the cake. Add flour, half a cup or less at a time, and gently mix in. Stir in soaked dry fruit mixture and cashew nuts. Gently mix. Pour into the prepared pan and bake at 300 degree F for approximately one hour 15 minutes or till a tooth pick or tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean (Start checking after 50 minutes). Cool on a wire rack and unmold. Cover the cake with foil and keep in a cool and dry place for a minimum of 2 days (If it wouldn’t be too much on your patience, keep for a week). Optionally (not all required) brush the cake with brandy or rum everyday for a week or two. This cake stays very well outside for 2-3 weeks and inside a refrigerator for 1-2 months.

70 comments:

A, mama of twins said...

Hi Archana,

I am another Archana not as good at baking as you but I keep trying! Thank you so much for sharing your fruit cake recipe. When I was growing up in India, my kerala christian friend would bring this cake to share with us every christmas and I would devour it. When I came to the US 20 some years ago, she gave me a copy of the recipe but it got misplaced in the thousand moves I made. Now that I read yours, it looks very similar and I am so excited to recreate it for our family!

Thank you again!
Archana

Anonymous said...

I am jealous of all you cooking queens (and kings:-)). I wish I can have fresh cakes right out of the oven. I will try this one day, but will have to start with elementary baking. I looked at the picture and started to drool:-) Good stuff.

Sandhya said...

Oh, thank you so much!!
I've been looking for a nice fruit cake recipe since Oct. Bookmarked about 20 of them picked from the internet, but none to my satisfaction. Yours sounds great!
Thanks and happy holidays.
Sandy

Sandhya said...

Archana, can i exclude the rum? Is that okay? What purpose does it serve?

Sri said...

Ayooo!!! Archana please can i have one of that fruit cake bundle!!! I love fruit cake kerala style. Are shajeera and shahijeera samething. I was thinking to bake chocolate cake but now I will switch to fruit cake.Thankyou Archana. Beautiful pictures.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Archana!!!
Thank you SOOO much for this recipe. I ABSOLUTELY love this cake and will definitely try baking it. Did you make the holly leaves and fruits with sugar/marzipan - its very pretty.

Merry X'mas!

Faffer

FH said...

Looks wonderful! Fruit cake is also a traditional British Christmas cake and naturally most American donot like it!:D
Fruit cake means 'loony or messed up' too when you want to curse people:)
Personally, I love it.I used to buy one for every Christmas in England.Now I can try it at home.Thanks.

wheresmymind said...

I don't know...just can't get into the cake...so traumatized *shiver*

-Jeff
www.cforcooking.com

Anonymous said...

Wowwwww you took me back to Christmas days in Kerala....:-) I know there are lot of better cakes now in Kerala but still this has a very special place in my heart....

Vini K said...

Hi Archana,cake looks good.I made one last year with the spices,and I must say I didn't like it as much.I guess I am going to try your version (but without the rum as somehow I don;t like the flavour of rum)

Anonymous said...

I LOVE fruit cake..... and my love has only increased after seeing your mouth watering version.
My Christian friends (from Goa) added brandy I think. Or am I wrong?
Ashwini

Gattina Cheung said...

Archana,
how you did it again!!! Your photos bring out the genuine ambiance of the season, so warm and so glorious.
I don't appreciate people joke on fruit cake, I like it! If anyone give one to me, I'll float to cloud! But if you show this gem of yours, I dare to dive down right away! I'm more a fan of British style of fruit cake (very dense very rum), however after seeing the beautiful spices you used in this recipe, I'm very tempted!
Archana, thanks for giving me the Picasa. I went check it out and afraid their caption doesn't function the same way as text. It's ok, I search for another software then. Thanks again for sharing your beautiful writing-up, photos and recipe with us, it's really hearth-warming!

Anonymous said...

Archana
I wanted to ask you this cake recipe for a while. Long ago in my world there were only two types of cakes and this was one.
I dont know whether I will try baking it now but I am sure I will in the near future.
You rock...
With love
Joyce

swapna susarla said...

hai archana...


this fruit is looking so delicious..yummy,,,,..liked this recipe...the pictures are great..thanks for sharing..

Krithika said...

I love fruit cakes. My friend's mom uses bread crumbs in her recipe instead of flour. What is the difference ? She is also from Kerala.

Anonymous said...

Beautiful!
Where is my icing?
Enthinaa kuttee ente potta cake-lottu linkiyathu? Enikku naanam varunnu.

Seema Bhat said...

Archana:
U are a superb photographer i must say ..man every picture is just devine...Fruit cake looks gorgeous ...just like the once you get outside ....thanks a bunch for sharing it with us
Cheers
Seema

Anonymous said...

Fabulous! Nice pictures and nice presentation. Archana, I'm saying it over and over again, "you're simply great". This fruit cake, walnut cheese tarlets, pumpkin bread pudding etc etc all look amazing and very very very very tempting and deeeliiiicious....I'm drooling right now and crying too at the same time(kodhi kondaanu ta). Too bad you made me cry :) but THANKS a lot for sharing all the recipes.

Thanks again Archana!
Rg.

Anonymous said...

thats a beautiful cake Archana. Can I subsitute orange juice for rum?
Nabeela

Inji Pennu said...

hahaha...I am happy you linked to RP's cake photo. hehehe! ആര്‍പ്പിക്കുട്ട്യേ ഇതീ അര്‍ച്ചനപ്പെണ്ണിന്റെ സ്ഥിരം നമ്പറാ, ഞാന്‍ ഒരു പഫ്സ് ഉണ്ടക്കി നോക്കിയപ്പൊ ഉടനേ ഇവിടെ ആശാട്ടീം ഒരു പഫസ് ഉണ്ടാക്കി..അത്രേം നേരം എന്നെ പൊക്കിയ മനുഷ്യരൊക്കെ എന്നെ പിന്നെ കണ്ടാല്‍ കൂടി മിണ്ടാണ്ടായി :) :)

btw, the cake photo looks horrible.
is this the way you take a picture?
cchaay...very bad! no photography skills and no aesthetic sene and no baking sense at all! I think me and RP should give this girl some tuition on all those. ;)

Why is it called plum cake in Kerala?

Inji Pennu said...

Oh, didnt complete my comment.

I once mad two kilo of fruit cake two weeks ahead and kept it like this. But my darling husband finished even without a crumb and what do I see two days before Christmas? Nothing. So had to make it again and hide them! :)

Mrs. K said...

ഹും! ഇഞ്ചീ!
നമുക്ക് നഷ്ടപരിഹാരം ചോദിച്ചാലോ? ഇതമേരിക്കയാ.
ശ്ശേ..എന്നാലും....

starry said...

Thanks for sharing the fruit cake recipe.I love fruit cakes and will definitely try this out when I am well.maybe for next christmas.

Mandira said...

Archana- the cake looks wonderful. Wish I could reach and grab one... he he.
I hope to make them before the holidays using your recipe!!

Anonymous said...

Archana, I am going to try this cake. I will get hold of all the ingredients this weekend and if I have time put it together right away or the following weekend. And I plan to spritz it with rum every day! I'll let you know how it turns out!

Viji said...

Archana another exciting recipe. I have book marked this recipe. I will let you know, when i try this. Thanks for sharing. Viji

Anonymous said...

Here is the recipe I am sure every Malayalee was hunting for. Atleast I was. Thank you!!!

KA said...

Archana
As usual great looking cakes..looks like you guys are truly living upto the term "happy holidays" :-)

Anonymous said...

HI Archana.. M a religious follwer of your site :) Havent made anything yet, but m planning on making this fruit cake and the black forest cake!

Just one question, for saoking the dry fruits, you have mentioned warming the orange juice & water. JHow much water should one take?

Thanks
Shubha

Shah cooks said...

Oh Finally! Thank you so much.what more to say?

archana said...

Archana
Welcome to Spicyana. This cake is so popular back in Kerala, and every family with an oven will have their own recipe. I am glad that you have tasted this cake already, so you know what I am talking about. Hope this recipe work out well for you. Happy holidays.


Anonymous
Thank you dear. This is no rocket science, start baking a cake with a good recipe and before you know it you will be another queen.


Sandy
Thank you, I am so excited that you liked this one. I am in a constant lookout for new fruitcake recipes too, especially when the season closes in.

Sandy
In this recipe rum is for flavor, you can totally avoid it. When people soak the fruits for a long time, more rum is added to act as a preservative too.

Sri
Take both, will you please? Thank you, hope you like this recipe. Shajeera is Shahijeera.


Faffer
Thank you, happy holidays to you too. Those leaves and berries are made of fondant. I am glad that you liked this recipe.

Asha
Thank you. Kerala fruitcake is definitely is a direct result of the “Raj”, and it is not fundamentally different from a British fruitcake. I know, may be those who coined this meaning had an impression that only lunatics eat a fruitcake.

Jeff
Mhh I know, I know….. Totally understand…..


KeralaGirl
Yes, I know what you mean. I guess we belong to a generation which got exposed to this cake when we were very young. Most of my younger relatives would not really care too much about this cake anymore.


Vini K
Thank you. Fruitcake spices can be sometimes overwhelming; you could bring it down to suit your taste. Let us know if you liked this one.


Ashwini,
Thank you dear. Brandy or rum can be used, it is totally your choice. Kerala fruitcake is not generally brushed with liquor, but some recipes do call for it.

Gattina
My head spins whenever my photos get a comment from you. You have been an abundant source of inspiration for me to improve. I do spend time looking at the magical pictures you take. Thank you friend. Ahhh, more rum, more fruits, you are indeed a true fruitcake rooter. I wish Picasa had some good text tools to go along with its other good edit/modification tools.

Joyce chechi
Well, here you go. I guessed yeeeeeh. We all do carry this cake along in our hearts wherever we go. Thank you. Thank you.

Swapna
Thanks a bunch, happy holidays.

Krithika
Thank you. I guess that one was a plum pudding. It looks almost like this fruit cake, only darker. Bread crumbs are used instead of flour in the recipe. A google image search will clear the doubts if any.

RP
Thank you. Rp, that one is a simple royal icing, but we may not get that right texture here, as the humidity back there helps a lot in keeping the icing semi hard. If you use the same recipe here to frost, you will have to use a hammer to crack it. ( I guess we will have to wait for high humidity days in summer to make it). Here is a universal royal icing recipe. Athoru kollavunna recipe ayathu kondu linkippoyathanee..

Seema
Thank you dear, Oh I am super excited. Happy holidays.


RG,
Oh, please don’t cry, wish you were anywhere near. Thank you dear, you have always been very kind to this blog. Happy holidays.

Nabeela
Sure, you can omit rum.

Inji Pennu
Angine alu veendum formilayi !!!! Ingi-ne thaiiyennooo, parayu, aarani nalla karyam chethathu ? Allenkil venda, pavam vayyaththallae! Here is why it is called a plum cake, by no way it is a misnomer.
http://whatscookingamerica.net/Cake/plumpuddingTips.htm will answer all your questions. It is about Plum pudding ( which contains no plums, and as you know , is a pudding version of the plum cake), but the same logic can be applied to plum cake too. Same happens here too Ingi, it is T’s all time favorite cake. So I get to make it all year around.

RP
Mhh sari, randu perum enikku enthenkilum udane ayachutharu.

Lalitha
Thank you, I will send you reminders before next Xmas. Hope you are feeling better now.

Mandira
Sure please, hope this one works well for you Manidra. Happy holidays.


Manisha
Great ! Do keep us posted. I am brushing one of these cakes with rum every other day till Xmas eve.


Viji,
Thank you, I am glad that you liked it.

Gini
Thank you dear. I hope this works well, sometimes I do wonder as to how to reproduce the taste of those fruitcakes we used to buy from those local bakeries.

KrishnaArjuna
Long time buddy, are you still very busy. Thank you, these are the stuff I do on weekends, so at the most we are having happy holiday-like weekends.


Shubha
Thank you Subha, and hearty welcome to SPicyana. I am glad that you liked the recipes. I have corrected the recipe now, thank you for telling me about it, that just shows your attention to details. Happy holidays.

Shaheen
OK, Thanksetto !!

Anonymous said...

Archana, quick question if you can help: what changes would be required for high altitude? Or should I just look on the ready mix boxes and make a similar change?

archana said...

HI Manisha,
Here is a link which many of my "high" living friends found very useful.
http://www.ochef.com/327.htm
You could try the directions given for a boxed cake too. I have no hands on experience in high altitude baking,we might need to add 2-3 tbsp water to the batter. AS this is not a very airy cake, we can keep the measures for baking powder and rest of the ingradients same. Hope this helps. I didnot see this comment until now. Were you planning to make this today? Hope this helps, good luck to you. Mhhh,RUUUM !

Anonymous said...

Ooh! I like high living! :D We're a mile high so I think I qualify!

I posted just before I set out to get the ingredients this afternoon. I'm making this with whisky instead of rum cos I thought we had a huge bottle of rum but my husband is playing very innocent right now! My mother used to make a Goan Christmas cake for which she soaked all the dry fruits in whisky. So I am hoping it will work for your recipe too - esp since you said that rum is mainly for flavor and for preserving the dry fruits. I will be baking on Wednesday.

Orchidea said...

Oh my god... those cakes are great!
Ciao.

Orchidea said...

Oh my god... those cakes are great!
Ciao.

Menu Today said...

Hi Archana,
I love fruit cakes.Your cake looks yummy!!! Nice Pic. Thanks for sharing.

Sri said...

Archana one quick question...yesterday i forgot to buy cake flour instead could i use all purpose flour? Do i need to add extra baking soda or powder if so....I am thinking to bake today...would appreciate if you could answer today. I am using petite loaf pan so should i fill it all way through or 3/4 each loaf.Thanks in advance.

Sri said...

Thank You Archana. Will let you know how it turned out :)

Sri said...

Yay!!!!!!!!! Archana it turned out really good...I made them in 8 individual mini loaf pan and i remember you mentioned that it should stay for atleast 2 days but I couldn't stop myself from having one piece...the whole room was filled with this sweet aroma...thankyou so much Archana.

Anonymous said...

Oh dear, what have I done?

:-(

Anonymous said...

Archana, It's Beautiful!!!!! Happy Holidays and Merry Xmas to you and family:)

SJ said...

Archana,

Thanks for visiting my blog and welcoming me to the blog scene. All I can say is Wow! Your photos and cakes are the loveliest I have ever seen (including all the Taj and Monginis and Croissants cakes in India). Maybe one day I will stop by for some lessons from you both in baking and the beautiful presentation.

Anonymous said...

Arch/Sri,

Can I use all purpose instead of Cake flour? I googled up on this but I need one of you guys to confirm this.

Thanks!
Mythili

Zerin said...

hi archana,

i had some doubts about the cake.
1. is the rum necessary for the cake?, is there a substitution for it?
2. can i use maida instead of cake flour?
3. is the soaking time and the refridgeration time for the caramel necessary?

archana said...

Manisha
Any liquor of your choice will be fine. I am really sorry, I did not see your most recent comment till this morning. I am running around crazy ( doing nothing ). We could probably do a 1/3 of this recipe and use a 6 inch pan of any shape, or as Sri tells me mini cakes. BTW, Whodunnit ?  Teamwork?

Orchidea, Menu Today
Thanks a bunch folks.

Sri
I am so happy that you liked it Sri, happy holidays to you. Hope you have enough cakes to last till Christmas, using mini loaf pans is a good idea.

Lera
Thank you so much , happy holidays to you.

SJ
You are very welcome, thank you for all these kind words. Looking forward to learn more from you in the future, wish you all the best.

Mythili
I am sorry, am I too late? You very can, especially since this is a dense cake. Cake flour is finer than APF, it is better to stick with it when you are doing a Chiffon cake or even a butter cake. I use CF for all my cakes, but for this one APF is just fine too. Happy baking.


Zerin s
Hello Zerin

1)It is necessary if you like that taste in the cake, but if you do not like the flavor skip it, no problem at all.
2)Sure please, that is what we use when we make this cake back in Kerala. Absolutely, yes.
3)It is good to soak the fruits preferably overnight, but you can reduce the time by slightly heating the orange juice before soaking fruits. Caramel can be made on the same day as you mix the batter. I suggested refrigeration only if you are making it ahead of time.

Zerin said...

Thankyou archana for all the clarifications. I will let you know how my cake turned out. I am not a great baker or anything. I try my hand out at baking when something interests me. I love to see through all your cake fotos. Your cake decorations are amazing.

Anonymous said...

Whodunnit? My husband, of course! He kept stealing the soaked dry fruits from the container and when I caught him in the act, he claimed innocence, begged for mercy and handed the container back to me. I put it back into the fridge, little realizing that he had not shut it properly. I should have checked at that point but we were just too tired from all the excitement of the blizzard. I was all set to bake late on Wednesday night and gave the container a good shake as I pulled it out. Whoops! There it was all over my kitchen floor. Sigh! I shared the rest with the main culprit over Seinfeld. Never do that! I mean share away but don't eat so much dry fruit in one sitting. We were both holding our stomachs through the night! :-D But it was really delicious, I have to tell you that!

I couldn't get out to a store till late Friday evening. I am just re-soaking the dry fruits. I was told to warm the dry fruits in the OJ till they plump up. So I am doing that and I will bake this cake, even if I die attempting it over and over again! OK, so I exaggerate but I'm giving it another try. My sister and her family arrive on Tuesday so it has to be baked and spritzed at least a couple of times before that. Fingers crossed for me, OK?!

Shubha said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Shubha said...

Hi Archana.. I m making this cake right now as I type :) Its in the oven baking! M very skeptical of the results, coz the recipe def. yields more than 1 loaf pan as you have mentioned. I m just hoping the temperature and time will be oki for the 9*13 cake pan I have used!! Time i can check though.. Will let you know how it turns out. Thanks

Shubha said...

Hey ARchana.. the cake is out of the oven and m happy to report tat it has baked to PERFECTION!!! :) Now have to age it for some days. Will update you soon :) bye and THANKS for such a lovely recipe!

Dr. Soumya Bhat said...

mind blowing i must say you are really talented

Anonymous said...

This is the best Kerala fruitcake i ever made. I have tried many recipes, but this was super. It tasted like the fruitcake we used to buy from a nearby bakery as kids. Thank you bringing back the memories. I think you can write a book now, your recipes stand out, there is a special taste.

Anonymous said...

Hi Archana

Wow your fruit cake looks so tempting. On seeing those photos my kid who was nearby started nagging me for this fruit cake. Sure gonna try this and wld let u know how it turns out to be. BTW I have tried thisrecipe of Eggless fruit cake - comes out good.
http://www.indusladies.com/forums/6800-post37.html

Anonymous said...

archana,
how many grams is 1 cup of butter? i thought of making this cake but need to know this first. thanks!

Anonymous said...

Arch, this is the best fruitcake i ever made. Just like the ones i tasted as a kid growing up in Kottayam. I am at Ohio right now, i think you should start selling this cake under the name "Kerala fruitcake" in Indian stores.
Geetha

Anonymous said...

Hi Archana,
Thanks for such a wonderful recipe. I made this y'day and my mom and husband both enjoyed this cake thoroughly. I reduced the number of eggs to 3 and used 1.5 cups of sugar in all (instead of 2), 1.25 sticks of butter instead of 2 and it came out exactly the way i wanted. You made our day! Thanks much.
- Krithika

Pooja Na(i)rayan said...

Archana:
I have used one of your quotes in blog about fruit cakes"A mere mention of the word “fruitcake” during holiday season evokes strong sentiments among people, they love it or hate it, at least on this matter we all seem to have a decision made ." Go see it and in case you dont want it be removed let me know. I tried this version and loved it

Anonymous said...

Archana:
A quickie, i have just now soaked fruits in orange juice and plan to leave it overnight (without alcohol)... should i leave it in fridge or does it say good in room temperature...
i plan it to do tomm afternoon, it is night 10:00 here. I would very much appreciate an early response if you can...
thanks sweety!

archana said...

Leave it in the fridge, good luck with the cake. Have fun

Anonymous said...

Archana:
I am the anon K who left the previos comment.
Cake looks delicious though, got couple of questions,
1. The cake looks really shiny and smells like ghee and so oilly (ghee-y?) on the surface even to the touch... and will it be ok this way... and
well, the more greesy touch is the only thing that bothered me though...
When i was mixing the butter and sugar (confectioners), it looked like small, small knots all round (like the small,small butter globules obtained by churning the butter milk, hope you get my point)... and still the same thing happened when i mixed with the already beaten eggs and beating them togeather) and it never looked like it is uniform and creamy. Only when i started adding the flour it looked creamy ( i used a kitchenaid 9 speed-hand mixer for the mixing process).
One more thing happnd, when i was preparing the caramel, the syrup turned dark color, and when i added water, it crystalised.. and again i prepared caramel syrup and there comes the culprit again and this time, i did add little more water and filtered the caramel seperately and used that, not sure how it would turned all right.
Despite this, The cake came out delicious, i think ( i just tasted the crumbles though:()
2. I just sealed the cake with cling wrap and left it outside at the kitchen table. is it ok to leave it or should it be refrigerated (since it doesn't have any alcohol)
Thanks a lot... i really enjoyed making this cake. and if it ok, will you be able to post a step-by-step pictorial baking og this recipe.
Sorry for the long space i took... appreciate an response that will put me at ease. Thanks!

Unknown said...

Hi Archana,

Can you tell me if we can buy caramelised syrup and from where in the US do we get it?Any specific brands to be used?

Anonymous said...

Hi Archana,

Thank you very much for this recipe. I followed exactly and made big fruit cake for New Year's family get together - not even crumbs left after a couple of hours. Really inspired me to try some of the other complicated looking recipes from your blog.

-Nithu

Anonymous said...

this recipe is indeed gud.archana cud you convert all the measurement in grams and repost this recipe or jus mail me at eddytags7@rediffmail.com. i am a home baker and were do we get quality baking ovens for domestic use cud you name a brand am based in chennai i bake plum and rich fruit cake.thanx
humble regards
swaroop tagore.

Neha Gattani said...

Hi Archana,

I am planning on baking this cake for Christmas. Can you tell me the pan size that you used?

Anzz said...

The recipe looks super delicious and the clicks are amazing. I had bookmarked your site a long time ago. You are amongst the first food blogs I got introduced to. it is my pleasure to invite you to my first blog event plus giveaway - Valentines Special. Do check it out and be a part of it. Would be great if you were there..!

My event- Valentines Day Special

Annie said...

Hello Archana,
quick question. I have soaked 3 cups of dry fruits and planning to follow your proportions (flour, butter, eggs etc) for the cake. I was wondering whether it would yield 1 loaf or 2 loaves. Could you let me know? I would really appreciate it if you could reply me before tomorrow. I am planning to bake it tomorrow so that I will have few days to rest the cake before christmas.
thanks,
Annie

archana said...

HI Annie,splitting between two 8 inch loaf pans will work.
You can bake it in a bundt pan std size, 9X13 rectangle,9 inch square/round/loaf for one cake.
I would even say that you can use two 9 inch loaf pans, cakes won't be as tall,but will taste and look good. Have fun and have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS !

Annie said...

Archana,
thanks for your quick reply. and a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS to you as well !!!

Although I love my bundt pan, I am a bit scared to try the bundt pan for this considering all the sticky items like the fruit and caramel. I will go with the safer option of 2 9 inch loaf pans with parchment paper underneath. and shall I stick to the same oven temperature and cooking time??

Slider

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...