Never in a million years did I think fruit cake would make it to my top 10 favourite cakes of all time! I literally despised fruit cake growing up, always finding it too dry or having too many sultanas. UNTIL I developed this super moist fruit cake recipe that is packed with fruit, nuts, dates and so much more!
What is a fruit cake
A fruitcake is a dense and sweet dessert cake that is typically made with candied or dried fruits, nuts, and spices. It is definitely a more ‘mature’ cake, and is often associated with holiday celebrations, particularly Christmas – but they can be enjoyed year-round.
Key ingredients in a fruit cake
Candied fruits: Fruits like cherries, orange peel, pineapple and citron and are often candied by preserving them in sugar syrup. They add sweetness and a wonderful vibrant colour to fruit cake, and can often be bought at your local grocery store to save time!
Dried fruits: Raisins, currants, dates, and apricots are commonly used dried fruits in fruitcakes. They provide a chewy and fruity texture to the cake and add moisture too.
Nuts: Chopped nuts, such as walnuts, pecans, or almonds, are often added to provide a crunchy element and enhance the flavor. For me, nuts are a MUST in a fruit cake otherwise there’s nothing to cut through the dried fruit which can sometimes be overwhelming (well for me anyway). 🙂
Spices: Cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice are typical spices used in fruitcakes to add warmth and depth of flavor.
Liquor: Some fruitcakes are soaked in alcohol, such as brandy, rum, or whiskey, which helps preserve the cake and adds a unique flavor. Because I personally don’t drink alcohol I have left this out of this recipe. I have used the the boiled fruit cake method which doesn’t require a long aging or curing time and therefore no alcohol 🙂
How to make fruit cake
This fruit comes together really easily with no mixer required! You can find the full written recipe, quantities of ingredients and recipe video in the recipe card at the end of the blog post, but you can follow along here for visual steps 🙂
Boiled Fruit Mixture
Begin with making the boiled fruit mixture. To a large saucepan add in unsalted butter, soft brown sugar, dried fruits, dates (if using firm dates – see note 2 on recipe card below), orange juice, orange zest and molasses. Bring that to a simmer over a medium heat, and once simmering, continue to let it simmer for a few more minutes.
Once done, pour the mixture in a large shallow dish to cool. To speed up the process I like to place the mixture into the freezer for about 45 minutes. Once ready it should have thickened up in consistency. Make sure it’s at room temperature (not hot or cold) before moving onto the next step.
Fruit Cake
Preheat oven to 140 °C (285°F) with the fan on (see note 3 on recipe card below if you don’t have a fan function) and grease an 8×3 inch cake pan (I use my homemade cake release), and line the bottom with baking paper.
Sift together your flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon powder, ground ginger powder, nutmeg and all spice. Mix together with a whisk or fork and set aside for now.
In a small bowl combine the unflavoured vegetable oil and eggs. Whisk with a fork and set aside.
In a large bowl add in the boiled fruit mixture from earlier (make sure it’s at room temperature), and add in the oil/egg mixture. Using a spatula, fold until it’s well combined. The mixture is quite thick so may take a bit of mixing to get it all combined properly.
Next add in the walnuts (and dates if you didn’t add them to the boiled fruit mixture), and fold until well combined.
Next add in the sifted dry ingredients from earlier and fold until just combined. Do not overmix, so only mix until you can’t see any more streaks of flour.
Pour the batter into the cake tin and spread it out evenly. Drop the cake tin lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles, and then bake for 75-85 minutes, or until a skewer or knife inserted into the centre comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool in the cake tin for 30 minutes and then run a thin knife around the edges of the cake tin to release the cake, and then turn it out onto a wire rack (right side up) to cool.
While the cake is cooling, prepare the orange syrup. Combine orange juice and sugar in a bowl, and then heat it up (in the microwave or on the stove top) until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Using a pastry brush, brush the orange syrup all over the top and sides of the cake while the cake is still warm. Be sure to use all the syrup up as you want it to soak deep into the cake.
Wrap the cake in two layers of foil (see video below for demonstration) and place it into an airtight container. Leave it in a cool dry place for 48 hours before serving. I know it’s hard to wait, but it is crucial to allow the fruit cake to sit for 48 hours before serving it. This is going to allow the flavours to develop and the cake to become nice and moist. If you cut the cake too early, it may seem a little crumbly. It will still taste nice, but for the perfect texture it’s best to wait 🙂
Commonly Asked Questions:
How long will fruit cake last?
This fruit cake will stay fresh for up to 2 weeks at room temperature (when placed in an air tight container) or up to a month in the fridge.
Can I use lemon in replacement of the orange in this recipe?
For the orange zest used in the cake batter, and orange syrup used to soak the cake once it’s baked, you can substitute these both with lemon zest and fresh lemon juice. You may just need to add additional sugar to the syrup used to soak the cake to ensure it’s not too sour.
For the store-bought orange juice in the cake batter, you unfortunately cannot substitute this with lemon juice as it will change the flavour profile of the cake quite drastically. You can however subsitute this with apple juice if you prefer.
Can I use plastic wrap instead of aluminum foil to wrap my fruit cake when storing it?
Yes, plastic wrap will be fine too. Just be sure to keep your fruit cake somewhere out of direct sunlight (preferrably a dark spot – like inside your kitchen cupboard).
What’s the difference between Christmas cake and fruit cake?
Christmas cake can be thought of as a specific variety within the broader category of fruitcakes. The term “Christmas cake” is typically used to describe a particular type of fruitcake that is known for its rich and intricately decorated features, and it is specifically associated with the festive traditions of the Christmas holiday season. In contrast, fruitcake is a more general term encompassing a wide range of cakes that share common ingredients like candied or dried fruits, nuts, and spices, and it can be savored at any time of the year.
Easy Moist Fruit Cake
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Fruit Cake
- ¾ cups (170 g) unsalted butter
- ¾ cups (150 g) soft brown sugar
- 2 cups (350 g) dried fruits - I used a combination of sultanas, raisins, currants, red and green glace cherries and citrus peel (see note 1)
- ½ cup (100 g) dates - pitted and cut into small pieces, see note 2
- ⅔ cups (166 g) store bought sweetened orange juice - like Just Juice, Tropicana etc.
- 1½ tbsp orange zest - the zest of about 1 medium sized orange. The juice of the orange will be used later in the syrup.
- 2 tbsp (36 g) molasses
- 1¾ cups (210 g) all purpose flour
- 1½ tsps baking powder
- ½ tsp salt - omit if using salted butter
- 1½ tsps cinnamon powder
- ½ tsp ground ginger powder
- ¼ tsp nutmeg
- 1 tsp all spice
- ¼ cup (52 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola oil
- 3 large eggs - room temperature
- 1 cup (100 g) walnuts - halved
Orange Syrup/Glaze
- 3 tbsp (50 g) freshly squeezed orange juice
- 1¾ tbsp (20 g) white granulated sugar
Instructions
Boiled Fruit Mixture
- To a large saucepan add in unsalted butter, soft brown sugar, dried fruits, dates (if using firm dates - see note 2), orange juice, orange zest and molasses. Bring that to a simmer over a medium heat, and once simmering, continue to let it simmer for a few more minutes.
- Once done, pour the mixture in a large shallow dish to cool. To speed up the process I like to place the mixture into the freezer for about 45 minutes. Once ready it should have thickened up in consistency. Make sure it's at room temperature (not hot or cold) before moving onto the next step.
Fruit Cake
- Preheat oven to 140 °C (285°F) with the fan on (see note 3 if you don't have a fan function) and grease an 8x3 inch cake tin (I use my homemade cake release), and line the bottom with baking paper.
- Sift together your flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon powder, ground ginger powder, nutmeg and all spice. Mix together with a whisk or fork and set aside for now.
- In a small bowl combine the unflavoured vegetable oil and eggs. Whisk with a fork and set aside.
- In a large bowl add in the boiled fruit mixture from earlier (make sure it's at room temperature), and add in the oil/egg mixture. Using a spatula, fold until it's well combined. The mixture is quite thick so may take a bit of mixing to get it all combined properly.
- Next add in the walnuts (and dates if you didn't add them to the boiled fruit mixture), and fold until well combined.
- Next add in the sifted dry ingredients from earlier and fold until just combined. Do not overmix, so only mix until you can't see any more streaks of flour.
- Pour the batter into the cake tin and spread it out evenly. Drop the cake tin lightly on the counter to remove any large air bubbles, and then bake for 75-85 minutes, or until a skewer or knife inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Allow the cake to cool in the cake tin for 30 minutes and then run a thin knife around the edges of the cake tin to release the cake, and then turn it out onto a wire rack (right side up) to cool.
Orange Syrup
- While the cake is cooling, prepare the orange syrup. Combine the orange juice and sugar in a bowl, and then heat it up (in the microwave or on the stove top) until the sugar is completely dissolved.
- Using a pastry brush, brush the orange syrup all over the top and sides of the cake while the cake is still warm. Be sure to use all the syrup up.
- Wrap the cake in two layers of foil (see video for demonstration) and place it into an airtight container. Leave it in a cool dry place for 48 hours before serving (see note 4).
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
303 Comments
I am wondering if you can freeze this after baking? I have never made fruit cake before but had a request with my Christmas baking this year. Thanks!!! Jaime
Hi Jaime!
I haven’t tried freezing this recipe myself so I can’t give a confident answer sorry, but I think if wrapped well in cling wrap and placed into an airtight container before freezing it should be fine 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe if you decide to try it out 🙂
Hello. Please advise if I can omit the eggs or what can I use as a substitute.
Thank you
Hi Lata 🙂
I haven’t tried an egg replacement for this recipe myself so I’m not too sure what would work well sorry!
Hihi, I would like to put alcohol. Kindly advise the steps over here.
Advanced Merry X’mas to u and awaiting for ur reply soon. Thanks.
Hi Gina! 🙂
My apologies for the delay in reply here. I don’t consume alcohol myself so can’t be of much help sorry! Orange juice is used as an alcohol substitute for this recipe so other readers have added it to the boiled fruit mixture and the glaze in replacement of some of the orange juice.
Hope you enjoyed the recipe if you decided to try it for christmas 🙂
Hi, thanks for the easiest recipe.
I so sorry if I can add rum in this recipe? Shd i minus any liquid ingredients here?
Heya! You’re so welcome 🙂
No need to apologise! I don’t consume alcohol myself so orange juice is used as an alcohol substitute for this recipe. Other readers have added it to the boiled fruit mixture and the glaze in replacement of some of the orange juice, but because I haven’t tried it myself I can’t really advise on any other substitutions that may be required sorry!
Hope you enjoy the recipe 🙂
I made this for the first time this weekend and shared it today, wow! Moist, tasty, perfect (and I am known for my cakes!). This might actually replace my family Christmas cake recipe that has been handed down through the generations.
Aww yay! Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback Carol 😀
So so happy to hear that the recipe was such a hit and even being considered to replace a cherished family Christmas recipe is such an honor! I’m so glad you enjoyed it and also means a lot coming from someone known for their cakes! 😀
Is there any way I can substitute the eggs and off so with what? Thank you! I’m excited to try this recipe !
Hi Rohini! 🙂
I unfortunately haven’t tried an egg substitute myself so I’m not too sure what would work well for this recipe sorry!
So sorry I couldn’t be of more help, but I do have some other eggless recipes if you wanted to check them out. You can find them here: https://cakesbymk.com/recipe-category/eggless/
🙂
Maryam, this fruitcake is delicious. Moist, flavorful and best of all, not too sweet! You really taste the fruits. This is now my fruitcake recipe. Bonus, it is easy to put together. Made my second double batch. Two loaves are going to my brother, a true fruitcake connoissuer. Also made a batch of your Pan Release and gifted it to a friend who is an avid baker. She loves it. Her comment, “Why didn’t we think of that”!
Thanks so much for the wonderful feedback Ann!
So so happy to hear you loved the recipe and I hope your brother gave it the tick of approval 😀
So glad your friend loved the cake release too – one of my favorite baking hacks!!
Hii. I have tried your recipe of fruit cake and it was amazing. i have a question. can i reduce the quantity of fruit in this recipe as i am baking for charity purpose around 45 in nos and how long do i have to bake them if i want to bake the cake in ready made cake festive moulds of 500 gms each. i can bake 8 at a time in my oven .
So also can i double the recipe at a time ?
Hi Sasha!
So so happy to hear you loved the recipe 😀
You could reduce the quantity of the fruit if you prefer and in terms of the bake time I am not too sure sorry as I haven’t baked them that size myself but if they’re relatively small like 4-5 inches then I would check around the 25-30 minute mark and then bake more as needed 🙂
So sorry I couldn’t be of more help, but so glad you loved the recipe and I hope the charity baking goes awesome Sasha 😀
Made a fruit cake for the first time with your recipe the other day – sooo divine!! Although the middle was a little soggy, and looked undercooked? Not sure if I had brushed too much syrup when there was a crack in the middle? x
So so happy to hear you loved the fruit cake Ewen! 😀
With the middle being a little soggy, it may be because the cake just needed a little longer to cook. It can also happen if the cake is checked a bit too much with a skewer or knife before it’s done baking, but once you’ve made it a few times you should get a better idea of the perfect cook time in your oven 🙂
Thanks so much again for the wonderful feedback!
hello, what would you suggest as a substitute for molasses? thanks in advance 🙂
Hi Anya! 🙂
The molasses is a key ingredient in this recipe so I would recommend using it if you can, otherwise treacle, golden syrup or brown sugar may work okay 🙂