Packed with so much dried fruit this traditional rich fruit cake is going to taste good from the day it is made. But, if you are organised enough to bake it ahead, stored in an airtight container in a cool place it will keep for several months or even longer!
Along with making Christmas puddings and mincemeat, November is when I usually bake my Christmas cake. I have been using this rich fruit cake as my go to recipe for Christmas and celebration cakes for years.
Although I have recently been using a simple simmer and stir method which you can find on my Easy Retro Christmas Cake on my Baking Blog Only Crumbs Remain, this rich fruit cake is one I still return to again and again. In the end, it's hard to beat a classic.
I know that some people say that rich fruit cakes need to be made in advance to allow them time to mature ( and many "feed "them with alcohol over that time too), but I really don't think it is essential.
Do I need to soak the fruit?
I like to save the fiddle of feeding my cake with brandy or rum over the weeks before I want to use it, so I soak my dried fruit in alcohol before baking.
To make sure the fruit absorbs as much as possible and to make them big and plump, I heat the alcohol up in a pan until it just begins to bubble around the edge, then add the fruit and allow it to stand overnight.
Which alcohol you use for this is up to you. I find a sweet wine or sherry works well and this year have used masala. If you are feeling extravagant you could use rum or brandy.
Dried fruit doesn't go off for a long time. It is, after all dried to preserve it. But it can become a bit too dry though if stored for a while and soaking it in heated alcohol is ideal to plump it up.
If it is very dry, just add a little more. If you don't want to use alcohol, apple juice or orange juice will also work well. Be aware that in that case, the cake may not keep as long. It will still be absolutely fine between now and Christmas, so there is no excuse not to get baking.
Lining the cake tin
Not sure how to line a cake tin? Follow my step by step guide to lining a round cake tin.
Baking a Traditional Rich Fruit Cake
A rich fruit cake does take a while to cook as it needs to be baked at a fairly low temperature. Sometimes they have a tendency to become a little dry around the edges and overcooked before the centre is ready. Especially with large cakes.
A year or so ago I found a tip to prevent this by adding a cake belt around the tin and it worked a treat. I won't cook a fruit cake again with out one regardless of size. Just recently I baked a 30cm (12in) rich fruit cake with one for a wedding and it baked perfectly.
You can buy reusable cake belts like this * one from Amazon and if you make a lot of fruit cakes I would say it was worth it as they are not very expensive. But you can also make your own.
How to make a DIY Cake Belt
Take one a long sheet of foil long enough to wrap around your cake tin with a bit to spare. Then take a strip of kitchen towel the same length fold lengthways so that you have a long strip of paper about the height of your cake tin. Then place on top of the foil.
Dampen the paper with water and fold up in the foil to enclose.
Wrap around your cake tin and fold the ends of the foil together to secure.
More Festive Cakes Made Easy
Traditional Rich Fruit Cake Step by step
Soak the fruit overnight. Cream the butter and sugar then beat in the eggs. Fold in the flour. Add the soaked fruit, nuts cherries and peel. Spoon into lined tin, level and bake, When cooked a skewer inserted into the cake will come out clean.
Rich fruit cake
Equipment
- Hand-held electric whisk or
- Stand mixer
- 23cm (9in) deep round cake tin
- baking parchment
- baking foil
Ingredients
- 400 g currants
- 250 g sultanas
- 250 g raisins
- 150 ml sweet white wine or sherry
- 225 g butter softened
- 225 g dark muscovado sugar
- 4 eggs beaten
- 1 tablespoon black treacle
- 350 g plain flour
- 2 teaspoon mixed spice
- 75 g blanched almonds chopped
- 75 g glace cherries quartered
- 100 g mixed peel
- finely grated zest of 1 orange or 1 lemon
Instructions
- Place the currants, sultanas and raisins in a bowl. Heat the wine or sherry until it just starts to bubble around the edge of the pan, then pour over the fruit. Cover and allow to stand overnight.
- Grease and line a 23cm round or a 20cm square deep cake tin. Preheat the oven to 160°C/150°fan/gas mark 3.
- Beat the butter and sugar together until pale and fluffy Make sure you beat out any lumps in the sugar. Gradually beat in the eggs, beating well after each addition. Next beat in the treacle.
- Sift the flour and mixed spice into the bowl and fold in.
- Add the soaked fruit, almonds, cherries, peel and lemon or orange zest and mix well.
- Spoon into the prepared tin and level the top, then make a slight dip in the middle.
- Bake for 1 hour, then reduce the oven temperature to 140°C/130°C fan/gas mark 1 and cook for a further 1-2 hours or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Mike says
Never made a cake before, so was amazed when mine turned out just like the picture....... Added a few extras, such as chopped dates (about 100g I think), t-spoon of cinimon and instead of 1 spoon of black treacle I used 3, as I wanted it to resemble a rich moist cake that looked like a christmas pudding.......and it did. Also soaked the dried fruit in warmed up Port (2/3 bottle) overnight, which was all absorbed in the morning.
Great recipe and clear instructions. My next test is to have a go at the icing bit at some point before Easter......my test run for a Christmas cake, but going to make two cakes and split the ingredients in half and use orange juice on 1/2 (for those that don't want alcohol) of the fruit and rum on the other half.
Can't wait to try them.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
It totally make my day / no my week to get comments like these. You have made nme happy. Good luck with the icing and thank you for taking the time to copmment.
Kirsty Martin says
This is my third year making this Christmas cake. I had never made any kind of cake before! They have turned out brilliantly. So tasty. the recipe is so easy to follow, and the tips (lining the tin and the cake belt) were so useful. Thank you!
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Thank you for your lovely comment its so special to hear people are coming back tomy recipes time and time again. Have a lovely Christmas
J x
Rodney Bosworth says
It turned out lovely, great idea with the foil belt, it works great, wait to cool before trying.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Fabulous to hear. Have to say the momemade foil cake belt was a game changer for me too and I have nevery gotten around to buying one. Have a happy Christmas.
Richard Peel says
Never made a fruit cake before but decided at 71 it was time to give it a go - & it turned out more or less perfectly! (Not a fan of mixed peel so substituted dried cranberries, which worked fine.) Thankyou for the recipe.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
I can not tell you how happy this comment makes me. Enjoy!
Ray Crymble says
Very easy and straightforward I’ve made this several times as a Christmas cake and it’s always well received . It’s a brilliant recipe. Thank you.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Thats exactly what I love to hear Ray. So haooy you are enjoying my cake recipe.
Donna says
I know its a 12" square cake but how deep is the cake, i'm looking for a 4" recipe. Thanks
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
The cake is about 3 in deep
Dawn says
Yes I made this and it was amazing, thank you, it impressed my mother in law of 86
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Fabulous So pleased you liked the recipe and impressed the in law
Lauren says
Hi Jacqueline,
I’ve just cut into my test cake after feeding it a couple of times over the last few weeks, marzipanning and royal icing over the last few days. Unfortunately the bottom half is quite crumbly and dry (I did alternate feedings on both top and bottom), I’m wondering if you might know why? I’d love to sort it before I make the proper wedding cakes next week, can send a picture of that helps? I don’t know if it is overbaked, if I didn’t feed it enough (it really only got maybe 2tbsp total), if I didn’t store it well enough (wrapped in parchment paper stored in a tin), any thoughts? It did however taste LOVELY so I am keen to keep the recipe if I can figure out the cause of the dryness.
Thanks!
Lauren
Lauren says
Hi Jacqueline,
I am making my best friend's wedding cake and they want the 10" bottom layer to be traditional fruit cake. I think I've found a winner with your recipe, however I wanted to know if you've managed to do the calculations yet for different sizes? As the layer itself needs to be quite tall I was planning to make 2 of these 10" layers and stack on top, do you think that would be fine?
Finally, if I bake now - 2 months ahead of the wedding, and feed weekly until icing, will the cake be fine?
Thanks in advance
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Hi Lauren I'm sorry I haven't calculated and tested it for 10 inch but I think making this recipe twice in the the larger tin is not a bad idea at all. Just beware that because it will be shallower in the tin the cooking time will likely be reduced. This cake will easily keep for 2 months if stored correctly. I would probably only feed for month and stop feeding 1 or 2 weeks before icing unless you really want it bozzy. Store wrapped in parchment then foil in a cool place.
Hope this helps good luck and enjoy the wedding. Do let me know how you get on and would I would love to see the finished cake drop if you are happy to share. Drop me line via the contact page and i will forward my email address as photos can not be added to the form.
Lauren says
Thanks for the helpful response Jacqueline, really appreciate it! Haven't made the cake yet but plan to this weekend, I will certainly send photos once it's all put together.
Thanks again
Olga says
Easy-to-follow recipe with ingredients you can easily find at a standard UK supermarket. No issues to report. The result is delicious, I will certainly be making it again. Thank you Jacqui!
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
You are welcome. So pleased you liked the cake,while I occasionally use less common ingredients in my recipe I do like to use ingredients that are readily available to every one. After all if shopping is not easy then the recipe is not a recipe made easy!
Sheila Foggoa says
This is my 2nd year of using this recipe & I love it I would however like to know if I can replace treacle ( if none in my pantry ) Thank you for a lovely recipe
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
You could replace with golden syrup or even leave it out altogether, It will only make a marginal difference to the flavour but the cake may be slightly paler in colour.
John says
Hi,
Tried your recipe and it turned out OK, but the cake seemed slightly 'springy' and resistant when bitten. I must admit to not baking often so am not sure if that is how it should be.
I do make a nice Victoria Sponge which is usually much softer.
Many thanks
John
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Hi John Im sorry if you were a bit disappointed with the results. Rich fruit cakes do have a much more dense texture which is completely different to the texture of a Victoria sponge. If you want a lighter texture then you need to look for a light fruit cake recipe. I keep meaning to add one to the blog but so far haven't had a chnace.
Ann McHugh says
Just made this for the bottom layer of my daughters wedding cake. It’s come out so level, didn’t burn and smells lovely. I’m going to let it mature for 5 weeks and then cover it with marzipan and fondant. All of your answers to the questions posted are very useful. Thank you.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Im very pleased you like this recipe I'm sure your daughter and her guests are going to love it. Have a fabulous day when it arrives.
Henry says
I've been asked to make a wedding cake by my son and fiancee. Really like the cake you made for Ellie ... but they want a fruit cake on the bottom layer. What would the quantities be for a 12" cake? Thank you!
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Hi Henry
I am in the process of testing my quantities for rich fruit cakes to suit different size cakes but I have yet to do the 12 in. That said I did make a 12 in fruit cake for Ellie's brothers wedding cake and Im pretty sure I doubled the recipe here.
Doug Baker says
Quick question: I prefer using a loaf pan vs a round pan: will this work? Two loaves, perhaps? Should I change the recipe amounts at all?
Thanks.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Yes the mixture can certainly be cooked in a loaf tin. But as I have not tested it I cant say how many it will make and for sure how long it would take to bake. I would guess 2 loafs maybe 1 x 2lb (900g) loaf tine and 1 x 1lb (450g) tin. fill the tins about ¾ full. I would bake for about 30 minutes at the higher temperature and the rest of the time at the lower temperature. Start testing after and 40 minutes at the lower temperature. and retest every 15 minutes until done. If you give it ago I would love to know how you get on and how long they take to cook.
Kevin Foreman says
This recipe looks amazing. I am going to try it for the first time for a village fete competition. How do you do the mixed peel? Do you just shred the peel of an orange, lemon, lime?
Kevin Foreman says
Also if you need to make the cake in an 8 inch tin can you still use the same quantities of ingredients?
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
It will probably be a bit too much mixture for an 8 in cake so may come out a little too deep. With all this fruit in it does not rise a lot so you want the depth to be just over ¾ of the depth you want the finished cake to be. As I have been asked a few times about different quantities for this cake I have it on my to-do list to calculate and test for different size tins but unfortunately, I just haven't had the time yet. So meanwhile I would be inclined you use the recipe as is and cook any spare mixture in muffin tins of ramekins to make a few mini cakes. Remember with different depths cooking times may vary. Test with a skewer. Hope this helps
Kevin Foreman says
Brilliant, thanks Jacqueline
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Mixed peel is actually candied peel and you will find it in the baking ingredient section of the supermarket. It comes diced in small pieces in a tub often next to the tubs of glace cherries. Sometimes you can get whole pieces of candied peel which you can dice yourself and I think its nicer and worth the effort especially for special occasions. I have seen it in boxes at the supermarket but only at Christmas time but some good specialist food shops sell it (I get mine from the Italian Deli's in Soho) and also on line. That said I the diced stuff from the supermarket is perfectly good enough in this cake just worth thinking about if you want to go the extra mile. Good luck with the Village Fete . Do let me know how you get on.
Kevin Foreman says
Ah, ok, thanks Jacqueline. I will let you know how the competition goes - bearing in mind any result will be tempered by my baking skills !!
Kevin says
Came Third. The first two had decorated their cake top with almonds. I think if I’d done the same I could have won. We’re enjoying the cake anyway
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Congratulations. That's Brilliant.
Robert Hutchison says
I have recently retired from work and needed an interest to keep me busy.
Just made your fruit cake , came out fantastic, I put wallnuts in the mix and decorated the top with toasted almonds.
The whole family loves it.
Best cake ever.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Best cake ever Im honoured and really pleased you liked it so much.
kelly rumsey says
I am yet to make this cake but I'm planning on making it for my nan & grandads 60th wedding anniversary on the 14th August 2021. I plan to make a 9in and a 6in. Massive ask but would you be able to give me measurements to make this in a 6in round tin please? Also i am going to be using fondant could you give me any tips this is my first time making this sort of cake. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this. Kelly
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
I have not tested the smaller amount but I would suggest the following quantities should be about right you want to fill the tin to about ¾ of what you want the the height of the finished cake. If you want to be absiolutely certain you have enough mixture you could try doubling this. Cook any psare mixture in a muffin tray for some mini fruit cakes.
A 6 in cake should take 1 ½ hour - 2 hours to cook
* 100 g currants.
* 100 g sultanas
* 50 g raisins
* 50 ml sweet white wine or sherry
* 65 g butter softened
* 65 g dark muscovado sugar
* 1 egg beaten
* 1 tsp black treacle
* 75 g plain flour
* ¼ tsp mixed spice
* 15 g blanched almonds chopped
* 50 g glace cherries quartered
* 40 g mixed peel
* finely grated zest of ½ orange or ½ lemon
I would reccommend buying a premium fondant as they tend to be easier to work with than supermarket own brands. I like Renshaw's regalice. Squires kitchen also do a good done. Keep the fondant you are not working with covered at all times as it will dry our quickly. Roll out on a surface dusted with icing sugar or cornflour. To smooth it rub in a circular movement with you fingertips after dusting in icing sugar or cornflour. Working with more than you actually need will also tends to make things easier. Hope this helps. Do let me know how you get on and congratulations to you nan and grandad.
Michelle Atkins says
Looks amazing!! Please could I have the recipe for a 12inch cake please xx
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Glad you like the recipe. Im currently away at the moment so don't have the info I need but I will see if I can work it out for you later next week. Sorry for the delay.
Patrick Lakin says
Just used your recipe and used a couple of my own "tweaks" its come out fantastic. Its our 5oth wedding anniversary next week, so going to feed it to help preserve it till our family can have some in the future. Many thanks, you've been a great help.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Congratulations on your 50th Wedding anniversary, Hopefully won't be too long now before you can share some of your cake with the rest of the family. Menahwile take Care and stay safe
Rachel Hammond says
Tested my new Range cooker with this recipe and it came out perfect.
I’m sure that’s down to the recipe, not the cooker.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
What a great way to test a new cooker with cake, I like your style!
Angelin says
Came out really well I made in two sections as my oven is small. The sides or top didn’t burn as I used your technique. Everytime my cake tastes yummy but half the cake gets burned. Now I am proud to look. Next time I plan to add some cocopowder and chocolate.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
So pleased to have solved the problem of burnt edges to your cake a common problem. Now all the cake will taste fantastc\ic so that's great news. I imagine it would be nice with a little chocolate flavour too.
David says
2nd year running using your recipe for our Christmas cake, I've added Candied Ginger for extra spice this year - can't wait to see how it turns out - it looked (and sounded) perfect when it came out of the oven! The baking collar in inspired!
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Ohh i like the sound of the candied ginger Im sure that will be a very nice additon. Have a lovely Christmas and enjoy the cake.
Loretta Mclean says
This cake looks absolutely delicious. What my problem is I don’t drink alcohol or none of my family. Can I make this cake with out the alcohol if so what will I have to put in it place?
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Yes you can make the cake without alcohol apple juice or orange juice will work well or you can even soak the fruit in tea. I sometimes use Earl Grey for this but regular tea will also work. Whichever you use there is so much lovely fruit in this cake it is going to taste great.
Sue says
Used your recipe last year for my christmas cake, it was so good Ive made the recipe twice this week- one batch for a large christmas cake and the second batch I made individual large muffin sized cakes which I shall 'feed' brandy over the next few weeks then marzipan and ice. Thanyou for sharing your wonderful recipe!
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Sue so pleased you liked the cake last year enough to come back and not make it just once but twice! I couldn't ask for a higher recommendation. I would love to pics see you finished cakes when you do them.
Bernard Arnold says
As a “Grumpy 81-years Old Man” who has just taken up cooking during the world-pandemic I tried you Rich fruit Cake recipe. What a winner! It looked so professional that it was a shame to cut into it. But even better than the looks was the taste ... out of this world. In my quest for simple “L-Plate” recipes I can cross off fruit cake. A great big thank you for the one of the biggest surprises in eight decades.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Bernard What a lovely comment to read first thing on a Momnday morning. You have really made my week. So please that you like my fruit cake so much and i agree it does taste so very good and a big thank you for taking the time to rate and leave a comment. I hope you find more recipes to enjoy on Recipes Made Easy. Take care Jacqui x
Shane Vincent says
I have never had any success with baking fruit cakes, the fruit always sank to the bottom no matter what I did and the cakes were rock hard. I found this recipe a couple of months ago and hey presto I can now make a beautiful moist fruit cake and it keeps so well. Thankyou so much.
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
It is a recipe I have used for many years and one I turn to again and again. I'm so pleased you liked it too. I do rather like a good fruit cake but my boys are not so keen, they just don't know what they are missing!
Gillian kemp says
I have a child who has a alligy to nut can I just leave them out
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Absolutely Gillian, just leave them out, with so much fruit packed into this cake you will barely notice them missing.
Juanita says
Looks delicious! How do you store the cake for 3 weeks? Do you leave it in the cake tin? Wrap it in foil? Do I need to store in freezer?
Jacqueline Bellefontaine says
Rich fruit cakes can be kept for several months if stored correctly. Leave the parchment on the cake and wrap the cake in foil and store in a cool dry place. If you want to you can "feed" the cake weekly with a couple of tables spoons of brandy for extra flavour. Prick the cake a few times with a skewer then drizzle over the brandy and allow it to soak in before rewrapping.