Hello December…! Well, we are into the last month of the year and I’m already in a vacation mood. This whole month is going to be busy for me with shopping, vacation, visiting family, and of course Christmas recipes …!! This being my first Christmas since I’ve opened my blog, I have been planning over a month to finalize all my recipes, researching through some authentic Christmas dishes and even got some great ideas from my friends on dishes served at their homes in a pure traditional style. So stay tuned to Pepper Delight, Delicious lip-smacking recipes are on their way!

Going back to my beautiful memories of Christmas, I have a lot to cherish… especially about Cakes. This is the time of the year where plum cakes start filling the racks of every bakery in my hometown. I love Plum Cakes but my brother wasn’t fond of it. And like any other responsible sister, I had to share everything with him (which of course I didn’t like to, hehe), but when it comes to plum cakes I didn’t have to as he didn’t like it anyways and I get to have it whole, Waah! And the funny fact; to add to his misery, all our friends & family who visit us gift plum cakes only. What more do you need to piss him off, my poor little brother!!

Fruit cakes are made with dry fruits or chopped /candied fruits, soaked in an alcoholic liquid with nuts and spices. The sweetness of the fruits, sourness from the liquid, the crunchiness of the nuts, and the flavours of the all spice, makes it a well-balanced Christmas cake.

Another aspect of this recipe which I like is the variety and the options available for the ingredients of this cake. For all my non-alcoholic readers, in today’s recipe I have substituted the alcohol with orange juice. At first look, soaking fruits in orange juice and then adding more to the cake batter might seem a bit scary and a sweetness overload, but the nuts add the needed crunchiness & balance the sweetness. And if you wanted to try the alcoholic version, check out my Christmas Fruit Cake/Kerala Plum Cake. 

I highly recommend you to read the tips section below to find out the variations in dry fruits and nuts, and also the notes section for critical points to be considered while baking a fruit cake.

A few tips:

1. Dry Fruits varieties: Raisins/Sultanas, apricots, dates (seedless), prunes, currants, figs, tutti fruit, glazed cherries, dried unsweetened cranberries.
2. Nuts: Cashews, Almonds, Walnuts.
3. Soaking liquid (alcoholic): Rum, Brandy, Amarula, Baileys Irish Coffee.
4. Soaking liquid (non-alcoholic): 100% grape juice, apple juice, orange juice, or water.
5. Spices: Ground all spice; ½ tsp cinnamon powder+ ¼ tsp cloves

Thank You Beena Aunty for all your valuable tips for this recipe.

Enjoy baking, Merry Christmas…!!!

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Christmas Fruit Cake (Non Alcoholic)

Indulge your family & friends with this flavor packed, Fruity n Nutty, Sweet n Moist Cake…!! A Non-Alcoholic Christmas Fruit Cake. 

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword christmas fruit cake, fruit cake, kerala plum cake, plum cake

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour 35 minutes minutes

Total Time 2 hours hours 5 minutes minutes

Servings 12

Author Akhila

Ingredients

For soaked dry fruits

• 1 cup raisins
• ½ cup apricots
• ½ cup dates (seedless)
• 1½ cup orange juice or more

For caramel syrup

• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 tsp + 4 tbsp water

For cake

• 1½ cup flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• ½ tsp salt
• 2 sticks unsalted butter (softened at room temperature)
• 1¾ cup brown sugar
• 4 eggs (at room temperature)
• Juice of one orange
• 1 orange zest
• ½ cup slivered almonds
• ½ cup cashews

Instructions

Preparation of fruits

• Chop dry fruits into bite size pieces. Place them into a dry glass container along with the soaking liquid. Ensure that the fruits are completely immersed in the soaking liquid.
• For soaking instructions and other tips, refer the notes section below.

Preparation of caramel syrup

• Add the sugar and 1 tbsp water into a pan and heat on a medium flame.
• As the sugar melts and starts turning golden brown, lower the flame and keep stirring till it turns a bit darker and thicker.
• Now add the remaining 4 tbsp of water, switch of the flame and keep stirring till the syrup cools down.

Preparation of cake

• Prepare the dry ingredients by sifting flour, baking powder, allspice and salt in a bowl. Keep aside.
• Drain the soaked dry fruits in to a separate bowl and add 3-4 tbsp of the above prepared dry mixture. Mix to flour coat the fruits, this helps preventing them from sinking to the bottom of the cake while baking.
• Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
• Line parchment paper on the bottom of a 9 inch nonstick springform pan and also along the sides extending 2 inches above the rim of the pan. Butter the paper throughout and set aside.
• In a large bowl, using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, beat butter on high speed until smooth and creamy.
• Add brown sugar and beat until light and mixed well. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed, which helps to mix it evenly.
• Add eggs one at a time followed by grated orange zest, and mix.
• Meanwhile prepare the caramel syrup as instructed above, and add the cooled syrup to the cake batter and mix.
• Add the dry ingredients alternating with orange juice, and mix till blended well.
• Now fold in the flour coated dry fruits, and nuts (slivered almonds and cashews) into the batter. Optionally you can reserve some nuts to garnish later.
• Pour the batter carefully into the prepared pan and garnish on top with nuts (optional). Bake for 1 hour and 35 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the center comes out with little or no moist crumbs.
• If the cake looks to be sticky, bake for another 5 minutes and repeat the skewer test. Once done, remove the pan from the oven and allow it to cool.
• Gently run a knife around the edges of the pan and then unlock it. Move the cake to a wire rack keeping the lined parchment paper intact and let it cool completely.
• Once cooled you can remove the paper, and the cake is now ready to be served.
• To store, you can wrap the cake in an aluminum foil and keep in an air tight container at room temperature for a week. Refrigerate thereafter.

Notes

• Soak dry fruits in either an alcohol or a non-alcoholic liquid to enhance the flavour. If using non-alcoholic, I recommend soaking for at least a day but you may do so for a few days up to a week. Refrigerate it after 24 hours. If using alcohol, you can soak it at room temperature for up to 6 months.
• The fruits to be soaked should be chopped into bite sized pieces. Use a clean air tight glass container to soak the fruits. Stirring it periodically or at least once a day helps it to rehydrate and not to dry out.
• After draining the soaked dry fruits, coat them in a few spoons of the dry flour mixture. This helps the fruits to stick on to the batter preventing it from setting down to the bottom of the pan while baking.
• While adding orange juice into the batter you might notice that it begins to curdle. This is absolutely fine and it happens due to the citrus nature of the orange.
• After removing the baked cake from the pan, allow it sit on a wire rack to cool down at room temperature. Do not remove the parchment paper from the pan when the cake is hot, it might crumble.
• Wrapping the cake in an aluminum foil helps it to retain moisture and prevent drying out.
• You can keep the cake in an air tight container at room temperature for a week. Refrigerate thereafter.

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Granola is the best way to turn your anytime craving into a healthy and an interesting meal, that too in no time. Another big advantage is; you can customize it easily with your favorite flavours…

I have tasted many store bought granola bars and have read about how easy it is to prepare at home, but it was during one of my recent road trips that my friend gave me her home cooked granola which tasted yummy, crunchy, and healthy; I loved it…!! That’s how I started working on this recipe, it’s very easy to prepare, an excellent source of nutrients, and the combination with oats make it a perfect crunchy snack.

I have used honey as a sweetening agent here, along with dry fruits, and pistachios / almonds as the crunchy elements, but you can substitute with any nuts of your choice. This granola can also be combined with milk for a perfect breakfast, or added as a topping to your favorite smoothies.

You can also add these granola to make yummilicious yogurt parfait which is an excellent breakfast option. Check out my Berry Yogurt Parfait recipe for more details.

Check out my ‘Note’ column below for additional customization options. Let me know how your granola turns out to be.

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Easy Homemade Granola

Crunchy Homemade Granola… loaded with nuts and dry fruits, perfect as a breakfast or for your snack time meal…!!

Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine American

Keyword breakfast, granola, oats

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 7

Author Akhila

Ingredients

• 3 cups rolled oats
• ½ tsp cinnamon powder
• Pinch of salt
• ½ cup honey
• ¼ cup coconut oil
• ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup almonds (chopped)
• ½ cup pistachios
• 1 cup dried raisins

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper and keep aside.
• In a large bowl, combine oats with cinnamon powder and a pinch of salt.
• Mix honey with coconut oil and vanilla extract in a separate bowl. Stir into the oats and mix well, make sure it is evenly combined.
• Spread the layer evenly into the prepared baking tray. Bake for 20 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and stir, followed by adding chopped almonds and pistachios. Bake for another 10 more minutes.
• Stir in the raisins and allow it to cool completely undisturbed.
• Store in an air tight container.

Notes

• Do not use quick cooking oats.
• Old fashioned rolled oats work perfectly.
• Substitute coconut oil with olive oil if you prefer.
• On a healthier note, you can add seeds like pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds.
• Any dry fruits can be added like dried cranberries, or apricots.
• Honey can be replaced with maple syrup.

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