A classic Christmas cake… in traybake form! This Easy Christmas Cake Traybake is easy to make, easy to decorate and easy to cut – perfect for Christmas entertaining and practically foolproof.
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Christmas cake in traybake form!
This Easy Christmas Cake Traybake is everything you’d expect from a traditional British Christmas cake – a richly spiced fruitcake packed full of juicy sultanas, raisins and currants, plus glacé cherries and sherry (though you can also use brandy, whisky, rum or even gin!), all topped off with marzipan and fondant icing.
However, it has one key difference… this Christmas cake comes in traybake form!
Why is that so great?
Because this makes it easier to make, easier to decorate and easier to cut. It’s just perfect for all your Christmas entertaining needs.
How to make Christmas Cake Traybake
The first thing that is great about this Easy Christmas Cake Traybake is how simple it is to make. It’s even easier to make than my more standard shaped Easy Peasy Christmas Cake (A recipe that’s been in my family for decades and is hugely popular with Easy Peasy Foodie readers too!) but still tastes just as good.
Basically, I took my traditional family recipe and simplified it even further.
All you have to do is beat together butter and sugar, then add eggs, flour, spices, dried fruit, glacé cherries and bake!
It’s really that simple.
No need to soak the dried fruit overnight…
Most Christmas cake recipes require you to soak the dried fruit overnight, but not this one! All you need to do is place the dried fruit in a large saucepan, along with the sherry (or whatever tipple you prefer), orange juice and some water. Then bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes – by which time the fruit will be juicily plump and infused with gorgeous flavours.
Honestly, once you’ve tried this method, you’ll never bother soaking the dried fruit overnight again – it’s so easy peasy!
(And if you want to make this booze free, simply use apple juice instead of the alcohol.)
Less time in the oven…
Because this Christmas cake is traybake shaped, it’s flatter than a traditional Christmas cake, which means it takes much less time to bake. My Traditional Christmas Cake takes 3 hours in the oven, but this Easy Christmas Cake Traybake takes just 1 hour and 15 minutes – how awesome is that?
And thanks to the easy prep, this whole cake takes just 1h45 from start to finish – perfect for all your Christmas cake emergencies ?
The shorter cook time also means it’s much easier to get right (no sinking middles or burnt edges!) In fact, I’d go so far as to say this recipe is practically fool-proof!
No need to feed…
Because this cake is already stuffed full of boozy, plump and juicy fruit, there’s no need to feed this cake with alcohol. It tastes amazing, just as it is. (Though if you want to feed it, that’s totally fine too – see below.)
How to feed a Christmas Cake
This cake tastes great, just as it is. But if you want to feed it with alcohol here’s how…
- Leave the cake to cool completely.
- Make several small holes in the top of the Christmas cake, using a skewer or knitting needle (or similar).
- Spoon approximately 4 teaspoonfuls of brandy over the top of your cake. (If you don’t like brandy, gin, whisky and rum also work well.)
- Carefully wrap the cake in a layer of baking paper and two layers of foil.
- Repeat once a week, up to a maximum of 4 times.
- Ensure you re-wrap your cake carefully each time after feeding.
- Leave at least a week after the last feed before you ice your cake.
How to decorate Christmas Cake Traybake
Another advantage of making your Christmas Cake in traybake form is how easy it is to decorate.
Now, I will be honest with you. I am not that great at decorating cakes… but even I can’t mess this one up!
- Roll out shop-bought marzipan to roughly the shape of the top of the cake.
- Brush the cake with slightly warmed apricot jam (shred-less marmalade will also work.)
- Place the marzipan on top of the cake and trim any overhanging edges.
- Roll out shop-bought white fondant icing to roughly the shape of the top of the cake.
- Brush the marzipan layer with a very small amount of cold water.
- Place the fondant on top of the cake and trim any overhanging edges.
- Roll out the remaining fondant icing and cut out a variety of different sized stars.
- Place these stars at random on top of the cake, using a little cold water on the back of each star to stick them down.
- As an optional extra you can use gold edible spray or edible glitter spray to colour the stars before placing them on the cake. (I used this one*.)
Christmas cake keeps better un-iced, so if you make the cake in advance, wait until just before you need it before you decorate. However, if you want to make and decorate this cake all in one day, you can totally do that! (I did for the cake in these photographs). Just make sure the cake is COMPLETELY cold before you start to decorate.
Conventional wisdom says you need to wait 24 hours between applying the marzipan layer and topping with fondant. However, if you are in a hurry, you can do the fondant icing right after the marzipan… it doesn’t make a huge amount of difference unless you are a real perfectionist. I did them both on the same day for the cake in these photographs and it was totally fine! (This may vary according to brand, of course.)
Easier to slice…
The final advantage to making your Christmas cake traybake shaped is that it is so much easier to cut! I always find with traditional shaped Christmas cakes that I make a totally mess when cutting them. Not so with this cake! It cuts very easily into 24 perfect sized portions – great for Christmas parties, school bake sales, boxing day buffets, New Year’s Eve celebrations… or just ensuring everyone gets a fair share on Christmas day!)
How to store homemade Christmas cake?
When this cake is completely cold, wrap first in a layer of baking paper and then a layer of foil. Ideally you would then put the cake in an airtight tin. However, if you can’t find a cake tin the right size, simply wrap in a second layer of foil.
Once decorated, this cake should ideally be kept in an airtight tin to stop it going stale. It can be tricky to find a cake tin the right size, which is why I recommend this super cool traybake cake pan* as it comes with a lid – perfect for storing your cake before and after decoration!
How long will homemade Christmas cake last?
Un-iced, and correctly stored, a homemade Christmas cake will last for up to 6 months, though I recommend eating within 3 months for the optimal flavour and texture.
Once iced, a homemade Christmas cake will only last for a few weeks – a month at most. But for optimal flavour, I recommend eating within 2 weeks.
However, this cake is so delicious, I doubt it will even last that long. (It doesn’t in this house!)
Can you freeze Christmas Cake?
Amazingly yes! You can freeze the un-iced cake. First wrap in baking paper and a double layer of foil – as explained above, then pop it in your freezer, where is will keep for up to a year.
Defrost at room temperature and decorate as above.
I wouldn’t recommend freezing an iced Christmas cake, however. The marzipan and fondant icing do not fare well in the freezer.
How to line your traybake pan – the easy peasy way!
I have a super easy way to quickly and easily line cake pans. Simply cut a piece of baking paper the width of your cake pan and quite a lot longer than the length. Then cut a piece of baking paper the length of your cake pan and quite a lot longer than the width.
Next, grease the base and sides of your cake pan with butter (I use an offcut of the baking paper to spread the butter). Then place one of your pre-cut pieces of baking paper across the base of your pan and up two of the sides (you should cut it long enough so it covers the base and two sides and sticks up above the sides a bit).
Grease the base of your pan again (it help the paper stick), then place the other piece of baking paper the opposite way so that it covers the base and the other two sides and sticks up above sides a bit too.
Finally grease the base and sides again, just for good measure (in theory, cake shouldn’t stick to baking paper – in practice, an extra layer of butter really does help the cake come off the paper better!)
Not only is the cake pan now beautifully lined (without any complicated maths or measuring!), but the overhanging baking paper will serve as sort of ‘handles’ to help you lift the cake out of the tin and onto the cooling rack – so no more tipping the cake up-side down and back again!
If you like this recipe…
…you might also like:
Easy Christmas Cake Traybake
Equipment
- A large saucepan
- Baking paper
- A large mixing bowl
- 2 wooden spoons
- A traybake pan measuring approximately 33 by 23cm (13 by 9ins)
- A wire cooling rack (You can improvise with a grill rack or oven shelf if you don’t have one)
- A rolling pin
- A sharp knife
- Star shaped cutters of various sizes
Ingredients
For the cake…
- 1 kg mixed dried fruit (ideally including mixed peel – see note)
- Juice of 3 oranges
- 100 ml sherry (or brandy / whisky / gin / rum - or use apple juice if you want this to be alcohol free)
- 250 ml boiling water
- 300 g butter softened (plus extra for greasing)
- 300 g soft dark brown sugar (or muscovado sugar)
- 4 large eggs
- 300 g self-raising flour (US - self-rising flour)
- 4 teaspoons mixed spice (or pumpkin spice)
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 400 g glacé cherries halved
To decorate…
- 500 g marzipan
- 1 kg white fondant icing
- Icing sugar (US - confectioner's sugar) (for rolling out the marzipan and fondant icing)
- Apricot jam (or shred-less marmalade) (for sticking the marzipan to the cake)
- Edible gold spray paint or edible glitter spray (optional)
Instructions
For the cake…
- Place the dried fruit in a large saucepan. Squeeze over the juice of the 3 oranges and pour over the sherry and boiling water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes. Leave to stand until needed.
- Preheat your oven to 160C / 140C fan / gas mark 3 / 325F. Grease and line your traybake pan with baking paper (see above).
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the butter and sugar thoroughly.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, beating the mixture until smooth after each one.
- Gently fold in the flour, mixed spice and cinnamon until fully incorporated.
- Add the glacé cherries and the dried fruit, plus any remaining liquid from the saucepan. (There should be very little liquid left, as most of it will have soaked into the fruit or evaporated.) Stir gently until the fruit is evenly distributed.
- Tip the cake mixture into your prepared traybake pan and get it straight into the oven. Bake for 1h15 minutes or until a skewer, inserted into the middle of the cake, comes out clean.
- Leave to cool for 1 hour in the tin, then remove and allow to fully cool on a wire cooling rack.
To decorate…
- Dust your worksurface with a icing sugar. Roll out the marzipan to roughly the shape of the top of the cake.
- Brush the cake with a thin layer of slightly warmed apricot jam (shred-less marmalade will also work.)
- Place the marzipan on top of the cake and trim any overhanging edges with a sharp knife.
- Roll out half the white fondant icing to roughly the shape of the top of the cake.
- Brush the marzipan layer with a very small amount of cold water.
- Place the fondant on top of the cake and trim any overhanging edges with a sharp knife.
- Roll out the remaining fondant icing and cut out a variety of different sized stars.
- Place these stars at random on top of the cake, using a little cold water on the back of each star to stick them down.
- As an optional extra, you can use gold edible spray or edible glitter spray to colour the stars before placing them on the cake.
Video
Notes
- Ideally you want the dried mixed fruit to be a mix of sultanas, raisins, currants and candied mixed peel. You can usually find this ready mixed in supermarkets. I have used both this one and this one in the past. If you can't find it ready mixed, buy the ingredients individually and go for these proportions: 40% sultanas / 30% raisins / 20% currants / 10% candied mixed peel.
- Suitable for freezing.
- Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.
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Kat (The Baking Explorer) says
Such a fab idea! This definitely makes Christmas cake decorating less intimidating
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks Kat. Oh yes, soooo much easier! 😀
Kerry Levene says
I made it as a traybake yesterday and had some batter left so made a few cupcakes. So yumny, I made it again today and now have another batch of christmas cake cupcakes!! Thanks so much.
How long do you think they will last in air tight tupperware?
Eb Gargano says
Thanks for this lovely comment, Kerry. So happy you enjoyed this so much. And I love that you used the mix to make cupcakes too! In an airtight tupperware container your cupcakes should last a couple of weeks at least. (If you can resist them for that long!) Eb 🙂
Helen says
Finished eating your traybake Christmas cake yesterday. Fabulous recipe, I will be making it again and probably not waiting till Christmas ?Might just about hold out till Easter
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks so much for this lovely comment Helen. I am so happy you enjoyed it so much! Eb 🙂
kimy says
Hi can you use a disposable foil tray lined with baking parchment?
Eb Gargano says
I have not personally tried that, but my understanding is that is possible. You might like to check out this article for tips on how to do well and safely >>> https://bakinghow.com/bake-in-aluminum-foil-pans/ Hope that helps… and do let us know how you get on! Eb 🙂
Rosie Thomas says
I’m delighted to find this recipe. I haven’t yet made it, but it’s similar to a recipe that I used for years, but somehow misplaced the instructions.
I’ve used my version for many occasions, altering it a bit by adding sliced apple, perhaps dates etc, sometimes with a little sherry and not ‘feeding’ it, if not, using fruit juice.
I even used a version to make my own short notice wedding cake (with plentiful alcohol) – it was a huge success and so moist.
Hopefully this recipe will be as popular, I’m pretty sure it will be x
Eb Gargano says
That’s so great to hear! Let me know how is goes 😀
Pearl says
Hi, I am planning on making this tomorrow, but I just wanted to ask about bringing the fruit and alcohol to the boil, ( I always thought you should not boil alcohol??)
Eb Gargano says
The reason people say not to boil alcohol is because you will boil the alcohol off. But that is not a problem in this recipe as we are using the alcohol for flavour, not alcohol content. In any case, this cake is then going in the oven at a much hotter temperature than boiling point! If you do want this cake to be boozy, you’ll need to ‘feed’ the cake after it’s cooked (and cooled). Follow the instructions above the recipe for how to do this. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
Elaine Hindson says
My second year of making this lovely Christmas Cake traybake. It’s so easy and delicious that I’ll never go back to a traditional Christmas cake recipe. Everyone loved it so much that we got through two of them, shared with our family and friends. Lots of requests for a second slice. I also purchased the Wilton traybake tin with a fitted lid, and it’s super for transporting your cakes to events. Many thanks for such a great recipe!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, yay – I am so happy to hear this! Thank you for this lovely review… and especially the 5* rating! 😀
Linda watkins says
Can you please tell me if double wrapped in foil how long is safe to store this tray bake .
Eb Gargano says
Hi Linda, as per the advice above I recommend the following… When this cake is completely cold, wrap first in a layer of baking paper and then a layer of foil. Ideally you would then put the cake in an airtight tin. However, if you can’t find a cake tin the right size, simply wrap in a second layer of foil. Stored as per these instructions (either the tin or double foil version), this cake will last for up to 6 months, though I recommend eating within 3 months for the optimal flavour and texture. If you need to store longer, you can freeze the cake. Full instructions for how to freeze the cake are given above the recipe card. Once frozen, this cake will keep for a year. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂