Can anyone recommend a good recipe for a Christmas Cake for an awkward family :)?!
Can anyone recommend a good recipe for a Christmas Cake for an awkward family :)?
My husband thinks its too rich, my eldest doesn't like lots of fruit and dislikes nuts and I've told them our Christmas cake isn't going to be chocolate, any ideas?
Answers: My daughter (from the UK) married on the island of St. Thomas in the Caribbean and wanted something a little different from the usual rich fruit cake traditional for weddings.
Basically, I used the normal rich fruit cake base mix but instead of adding "traditional" fruits, went to a Health Food shop and bought crystallised "tropical fruits" - the pineapple was particularly yummy. Called it, surprisingly enough, Caribbean Wedding Cake. It was very popular. If you want to spice it up a bit, add rum rather than sherry or brandy.
The whole point about the traditional rich fruit cake, is that it is a "keeper" - a cut-and-come-again cake which is still edible six months later! What about carrot cake? try this..I've know even picky eaters love this
Carrot Cake
CAKE
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 3/4 cups white sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups shredded carrots
1 cup flaked coconut
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
FROSTING
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups icing sugar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan.
Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon; make a well in the centre and add sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla.
Mix with wooden spoon until smooth.
Stir in carrots, coconut, walnuts and pineapple.
Pour into 9x13 inch pan and bake for about 45 minutes.
Don't panic, the centre will sink a little.
Allow to cool; when cool, ice the cake.
You can certainly use your favourite cream cheese frosting to ice this cake, but the one I've included is highly
recommended (I usually leave the cake in the 13x9 pan and just ice the top).
To make the frosting: Cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth; add the icing sugar and beat until creamy. You could try an angel food cake, applesauce cake, coconut cake would be a beautiful light alternative. make a vanilla sponge or a victoria sponge. Its not too rich, easy to make (as long as you cook it for the correct amount of time, not a minute under or a mintue over!). Although its not traditionally a christmas cake, but it sounds like it might be something that they all enjoy. you can still ice it like a christmas cake. I love red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting. Yes, I know it's got chocolate in it & it's not light!!!! ;)
http://southernfood.about.com/od/chocola...
http://southernfood.about.com/od/icingre... Why dont you get a recipe for fruit cake which has far less friut and nuts than christmas cake and try to lower the amount of currents raisins and sultanas and instead add dried blueberries and cherries or tropical and citrus fruit.
I like to omit a spoon of sugar for a spoon of syrup or honey or marmalade to stop the flavour being too predictable.
I do not like the intensity of christmas cake either but the spices will work well with the above.