Need a smaller Christmas cake this Christmas? Or want to make Christmas cakes as gifts? Or do you just want a Christmas cake that is easy to make and easy to slice? Either way, this Easy Christmas Loaf Cake recipe is your answer… ready in 1 hour 30 minutes, it requires just a handful of simple ingredients, and can be decorated and served on the same day you make it!
A loaf shaped Christmas cake!
This year I have been working on a loaf shaped version of Christmas cake. It uses a very similar recipe to my popular Last Minute Emergency Christmas Cake – but I’ve adapted the recipe so it makes 2 x 1lb (450g) loaf shaped Christmas cakes.
Christmas Loaf Cakes are going to be your new favourite thing… They are perfect for smaller households and ideal to make and give as gifts. And they are super easy to make, easy to decorate, easy to store and easy to slice!
You can also freeze the undecorated cakes – perfect if you want to get ahead!
So easy to make…
All you need to do is place a bag of dried fruit in a saucepan, add sherry (see the recipe card for alternatives), orange juice and boiling water. Bring to the boil, then simmer.
Meanwhile, beat together butter and sugar, and add the eggs, flour and spices. Then add in the boiled fruit and plus some glacé cherries and tip the cake mixture into two lined 1lb (450g) loaf tins.
Finally, bake in a preheated oven for just 1 hour, or until a skewer comes out clean! (No skewer? No worries! Just use a teaspoon handle instead 😀 )
And super simple to decorate…
And it’s not just the Christmas loaf cake that’s easy to make… the Christmas loaf cake decoration is also super easy… and yet looks really pretty!
Simply roll out shop-bought marzipan and cut out a rectangle the same size as the cake. (I use the cake tin as a guide to get my rectangle the right shape!) Lightly brush the cake top with a very small amount of water and then pop the marzipan circle on top. (This is just to help the marzipan to stick – don’t go too mad here… You don’t want to make your cake wet!)
Next, roll out shop-bought fondant icing and cut out a rectangle the same size as the cake. (Again, I use the cake tin as a guide to get my rectangle the right shape!) Lightly brush the marzipan with a very small amount of water and then pop the fondant rectangle on top.
Finally, use an assortment of star cutters (or other Christmas shapes!) to cut out stars from the remaining marzipan. Lightly brush the underside of the marzipan stars with water and arrange on top of the cake.
All of this takes just 15 minutes to do, but looks very effective… And it is SO MUCH easier than trying to cover the whole cake – sides and all – with marzipan and fondant icing.
Why boil the fruit?
You might be wondering why I boil the fruit for this recipe…
Well, most Christmas cake recipes require you to soak the dried fruit overnight… it makes the cake wonderfully moist and infuses it with sherry (or whatever tipple you prefer). But it’s a bit of a faff!
However, boiling the fruit achieves all the same benefits but in a fraction of the time! All you need to do is place the dried fruit in a large saucepan, along with the sherry (or whatever tipple you prefer – see the recipe for alternatives), 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.)
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 store homemade Christmas cake
I’ve designed this Christmas Loaf Cake so you can make it and decorate it all in one day. Once decorated, this cake should ideally be kept in an airtight tin to stop it going stale.
Alternatively, if you want to store this Christmas loaf cake before decorating, wait until the 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.
How long will Christmas cake last?
Un-decorated, and correctly stored (see above), 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-decorated cake. First wrap in baking paper and a double layer of foil – as explained above, then pop it in your freezer, where it 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, as the marzipan and fondant icing do not fare well in the freezer!
If you like this recipe…
…you might also like:
Easy Christmas Loaf Cake
Ingredients
For the cake…
- 500 g mixed dried fruit ideally including mixed peel – see note
- Juice of 1 orange
- 100 ml sherry or brandy / whisky / gin / rum - or use apple juice if you want this to be alcohol free
- 100 ml boiling water
- 150 g butter softened plus extra for greasing
- 150 g soft dark brown sugar (or muscovado sugar)
- 2 large eggs
- 150 g self-raising flour (US - self-rising flour)
- 2 teaspoons mixed spice (or pumpkin spice)
- 1 teaspoons cinnamon
- 200 g glacé cherries halved
To decorate…
- 250 g marzipan (I prefer the paler ‘natural’ colour… but the bright yellow stuff works too!)
- 250 g white fondant icing
- Icing sugar (US - confectioner's sugar) (for rolling out the marzipan and fondant icing)
Instructions
For the cake…
- Place the dried fruit in a large saucepan. Squeeze over the juice of the orange 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. Line 2 x 1lb (450g) loaf tins with loaf tin liners.
- 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 loaf tins and get them straight into the oven. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until a skewer, inserted into the middle of the cake, comes out clean. (I check every 5 minutes from 50 minutes. It usually takes 55 minutes in my oven.)
- Leave to cool for 10 minutes in the tin (or until cool enough to handle without burning your hands!), then remove the cake from the tin and allow to fully cool on a wire cooling rack… The cake should take approximately 2 hours from the time it comes out of the oven to cool fully. Do not decorate until completely cool!
To decorate…
- Dust your worksurface with icing sugar. Take 200g of the marzipan and roll it so it is big enough to cut 2 rectangles out the same size as the top of the 2 cakes. Cut the 2 rectangles out, using the cake tin as a guide to help you get the right size.
- Brush the 2 loaf cakes with a very small amount of cold water. (This is to help the marzipan stick to the cake – but be very sparing, you don’t want to make the cakes wet!)
- Place 1 marzipan rectangle on top of 1 of the loaf cakes and trim any overhanging edges with a sharp knife. Repeat for the other loaf cake, so both cakes are covered with a single layer of marzipan.
- Roll out the white fondant icing so it is big enough to cut 2 rectangles out the same size as the top of the 2 cakes. Cut the 2 rectangles out, again using the cake tin as a guide to help you get the right size.
- Brush the marzipan layer with a very small amount of cold water.
- Place 1 fondant rectangle on top of the marzipan layer on 1 of the loaf cakes and trim any overhanging edges with a sharp knife. Repeat for the other loaf cake, so both cakes are covered with a single layer of marzipan, topped with a single layer of fondant icing.
- Roll out the remaining marzipan and cut out a variety of different sized stars. (Or whatever Christmas shapes you like!)
- Place these stars at random on top of the cakes, using a little cold water on the back of each star to stick them down.
- Your cakes are now ready to eat!
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 use THIS ONE 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.
- This recipe makes 2 x 1lb (450g) Christmas Loaf Cakes. If you only want to make 1 Christmas Loaf Cake, simply halve the recipe.
- Suitable for freezing.
- Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.
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Gee Williams says
Can you replace 5he fruit with a jar if m8nceneat?
Eb Gargano says
I’m afraid I don’t know as I have never tried this, but my best guess would be no. Mincemeat is different to dried fruit in a number of ways (additional sugar, additional fat…) so I think it would probably need a whole different recipe to make that work. But you’ve given me a great idea for a future recipe!
Kim Trask says
I’d like to make this cake for my husband’s birthday. Can I do it using one round cake tin, if I do how long and at what temperature should I bake it.?
Thank you for an English cook in France.
Eb Gargano says
Hi Kim, I have actually published the round version of this cake here >>> https://www.easypeasyfoodie.com/last-minute-emergency-christmas-cake/ Let me know how you get on! Eb 🙂
Cathy says
Just what I need easy
Eb Gargano says
Yay – that’s good to hear!
Carol Vincent says
Can I make one cake in a 2lb loaf tin? If so do I adjust the oven settings?
Eb Gargano says
I have not tested this in a 2lb loaf tin, so I cannot give you a definitive answer, but my best guess would be same temperature for 1h15-1h30. Normally, I would drop the oven temperature, but in this case, the temperature is already quite low for a cake, so you should be OK. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
Kim Trask says
Thank you Eb. Merci beaucoup.
I’ll try it when I’ve managed to find all the ingredients here in France before
my husband’s birthday soon..
Kim🐱
Eb Gargano says
Fingers crossed you manage to find all the ingredients in France!
Joan says
Could I put in some backing powder found dident rice much
Eb Gargano says
As this is a fruit cake, it doesn’t rise much. Fruit cakes are typically much more dense than regular sponge cakes because of the large quantity of dried fruit. Though if you wanted to, you could certainly experiment with adding a teaspoon of baking powder into the mix.
Peter says
I need to know this to please.Thanks
Eb Gargano says
Hi Peter – sorry I’m not quite sure what you are referring to here – what was it that you needed to know?
Tommy Callan says
Love the sound of this delicious looking christmas cake. Could I ask can I use a 2lb loaf tin, maybe reduce the cooking temperature. Many thanks Tommy
Eb Gargano says
Thank you! I have not tested this in a 2lb loaf tin, so I cannot give you a definitive answer, but my best guess would be same temperature for 1h15-1h30. Normally, I would drop the oven temperature, but in this case, the temperature is already quite low for a cake, so you should be OK. Hope that helps! Eb 🙂
Tommy Callan says
Many thanks. I shall give it a try. Thanks again merry Christmas. Tommy
Eb Gargano says
Let me know how you get on! Merry Christmas 🙂
Savi says
Hi there, this looks fantastic what could I replace the flour with to make it gluten free?
Eb Gargano says
Thank you. It should work with gluten free self-raising flour, but I have not tested this recipe with GF flour, so I cannot give you a definitive answer. Make sure you choose self-raising GF flour, and you may want to consider adding a teaspoon of xanthan gum (to give the cake a better texture), if the brand of flour you buy does not already contain xanthan gum. Let me know how you get on! Eb 🙂
Lynne Tollman says
Just made this cake and had to have a taste. It’s delicious. Will be making some more of your recipes in the next few weeks. Thank you.u
Eb Gargano says
That’s great to hear! Eb 🙂
Carol says
Just making the fruit loaf now x first one out and looks good 2nd one still in oven x not sure if you can advise if this is vegetarian ??
Eb Gargano says
Good to hear! Yes, this is vegetarian.(Though if the vegetarian you are cooking for is strict, you may want to double check if the alcohol you use in the cake is vegetarian – not all are!)
Jane Ogden says
This recipe is so easy and the cake is delicious. I will make them again just before Christmas in the hope I can get the marzipan and icing on before it is eaten this time. Super recipe. Can’t wait to try more of your recipes now Eb. Thank you.
Eb Gargano says
Aw, that’s so great to hear! I am delighted you enjoyed this recipe so much. Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review… and especially for the 5* rating! Eb 🙂
Karen says
This is such a fun festive idea. I love that it’s smaller than a layer cake and that piled high frosting looks so good!
Eb Gargano says
Aw, thanks – I am so glad you think so!
Chrisi says
I made this cake but it is so very crumbly, it doesn’t slice well, any ideas please.
Eb Gargano says
Oooh, I’m not quite sure what can have gone wrong there. I’ve cooked this recipe many times and it always turns out very moist and not at all crumbly. Did you follow the recipe exactly as written? I would expect it to be crumbly if, for example, you did not soak the fruit, or if you cooked it for too long or at a higher temperature… but I am assuming you would have said if you’d done something different. The only thing I can think of is perhaps you have a hotter oven than I have (ovens do vary, annoyingly!) and that could have caused the problem. Sorry I can’t be more helpful on this occasion, but I am really not quite sure what can have gone wrong. Eb 🙂
Alison says
Thank you so much for this fantastic recipe. It’s so quick and easy to make and absolutely delicious. I actually halved the quantities as I only wanted one cake it worked perfectly.
Going to check out some of your other recipes now!
Eb Gargano says
Great to hear! Thank you for this lovely review… and especially for the 5* rating! Eb 🙂