Gluten-Free Vegan Christmas Cake
Gluten free vegan Christmas cake - no one needs to miss out with this delicious Christmas cake recipe as it is free from eggs, dairy and gluten! It is easy to make, moist, rich and delicious. It can be eaten right away or made in advance and matured.
Servings 12 people
Ingredients
- 125 g raisins
- 125 g sultanas
- 125 g currants
- 100 g dried cranberries
- 100 g mixed candied peel (or chopped dried apricots)
- 85 g glace cherries quartered
- 100 ml rum, whisky, brandy or sherry (plus extra for feeding)
- 125 g silken tofu
- 80 ml unsweetened non-dairy milk
- 1 Tablespoon vinegar
- 175 g vegan block butter (I use Naturli Vegan Block) softened
- 125 g dark brown soft/muscovado sugar
- 50 g light brown soft/muscovado sugar
- 30 g treacle
- finely grated zest of 1 orange
- finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- ¾ teaspoon xanthan gum
- ¾ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- 1 teaspoon mixed spice
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- pinch salt
- 250 g oat flour OR a plain gluten-free flour blend (Doves Farm Freee)
- 90 g ground almonds (almond flour)
- 50 g gram flour
- 50 g chopped blanched almonds
Instructions
- The day before you want to bake the cake (and up to a week in advance), mix together the dried fruits and the alcohol in a tub with a lid. Give them a stir every now and again to ensure that they are evenly coated.
- The following day, preheat the oven to 150°C/130°C fan/300°F/gas mark 2. Grease a deep 20cm/8inch round cake tin and line it with a double layer of baking parchment.
- Blend the silken tofu, milk and vinegar until smooth, either in a blender or in a jug with a stick blender (I use a stick blender).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the vegan butter, dark and light brown sugars, treacle and orange and lemon zest until fluffy.
- Whisk the xanthan gum, bicarbonate of soda, mixed spice, cinnamon, nutmeg and a pinch of salt into the butter mixture.
- Add the gluten-free flour or oat flour, ground almonds, chickpea flour and the tofu mixture and mix to a smooth, thick batter.
- Fold in the soaked fruit, along with any juices, and the chopped almonds.
- Transfer the batter to the prepared tin and spread it level. Use the back of a wet spoon to smooth the top, re-wetting the spoon as needed.
- Bake for about 2 hours 45 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. You may need to loosely cover the top with tin foil towards the end of baking if the top starts to get too dark before the cake is cooked through.
- Allow the cake to cool for 30 minutes then brush with 1 Tablespoon of your preferred alcohol. Leave to cool in the tin completely (about 8 hours).
- Once the cake is completely cold, remove it from the tin and brush all over with a little alcohol.
- Wrap the cake up in baking parchment then tin foil (it MUST be completely cold first), and store in an airtight container, feeding every week or two with alcohol, for up to three months.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos.
- For the best results follow the recipe closely and make it exactly as written. Changing any of the ingredients could affect the outcome of the cake. I cannot comment on how any substitutions will work so any changes to the recipe must be done at your own risk.
- I have not provided US cup conversions as they are too inaccurate for this recipe. Please use a scale.
- You can vary the types of dried fruit that you add to suit your own tastes, as long as you keep the same overall weight – a total of 660g. Chopped dried dates, figs and apricots all work well, and you could even add dried cherries, blueberries or pineapple.
- To get clean slices, use a very sharp serrated knife and cut the cake with a sawing motion rather than pressing straight down.