Missing the iconic Indian Christmas plum cake from your childhood? This eggless fruit cake with alcohol-soaked nuts (plus an orange juice option) is rich, moist and deeply spiced. Just like the bakery cakes you remember, but easy enough to bake at home and remind you of your childhood Christmas.
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- Ingredients
- How to make Christmas Plum Cake (Fruit Cake)
- Anvita’s Top Tips
- Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Related
- Indian Bakery Style Eggless Plum Cake(Fruit Cake)
Come December, my neighbors and friends would often show up with a foil-wrapped loaf dotted with glossy fruits and nuts. One bite was all it took for me to fall in love with it. Year later, after moving away from India, Christmas felt incomplete without that familiar slice. So I started baking this eggless cake at home and the moment it goes into the oven, it feels like we’re back home all over again.
Ingredients
Here is just a gist of the ingredients, please see recipe card for quantities.
- Dried fruits: I used mixed dried fruits like raisins, black raisins, dried cranberries, cherries along with Tutti Fruti or Holiday Fruit . You can also add chopped dried plums & dried apricots.
- Dried Nuts: You will need cashews and walnuts, however you can also use pecans or almonds.
- Dry ingredients: All-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, warm ground spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, cardamom).
- Wet ingredients: Yogurt, neutral oil, brown sugar, vanilla extract, milk.
- Soaking : I soaked my dried fruits and nuts for a day in Rum, however for best results if you plan better than me, soak them 3 months in advance. Sometimes when I don’t want a boozy version, I swap the rum with orange juice. If baking this cake is a last minute, you can skip the soaking all together, but you wouldn’t get that boozy taste.
How to make Christmas Plum Cake (Fruit Cake)
- Soak mixed dried fruits and chopped nuts in rum or brandy, or in orange juice for a non-alcoholic version, let them sit for a few hours or days, or I gently simmer in juice and cool.
- Make caramel by melting sugar with a 3 tablespoons of water until amber, carefully adding hot water, then cooling it completely.
- Preheat the oven to 320 F and grease and line your loaf or round tin with parchment paper or by dusting flour.
- Whisk together all dry ingredients in a bowl: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices.
- In another bowl, whisk yogurt, oil, hot milk, vanilla and cooled caramel, mixing until smooth. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet in batches.
- Dust flour on the soaked dried fruits and nuts to coat them.
- Toss soaked fruits and nuts in a bit of flour, then gently fold them into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the pan, level the top, tap out air bubbles if any and bake for 60 minutes until deep brown and a toothpick comes out mostly clean. Depending on the type of your oven, if could either take 10 mins or less time, so I suggest keep an eye our after 50 minutes.
- Cool the cake in the pan briefly, then on a rack, and ideally rest it wrapped for 12-24 hours.
- Brush with alcohol for that authentic bakery taste before slicing and serving.
Anvita’s Top Tips
- Soak ahead for deeper flavor.
- Bake low and slow to avoid a dry or burnt top.
- Fold gently once the flour goes in, don’t overmix.
- Rest the cake overnight for neater slices and a richer taste.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
| Mistake | Result | How to avoid it |
|---|---|---|
| Overbaking the cake | Dry, crumbly texture | Bake at a lower temperature, check early and use a skewer |
| Adding too much liquid | Dense, gummy or undercooked centre | Aim for a thick, pourable batter |
| Not coating fruits in flour | Fruits sink to the bottom | Toss soaked fruits and nuts with a spoonful of flour first |
| Cutting the cake too soon | Crumb falls apart, flavour seems flat | Let it rest 12–24 hours wrapped before slicing and serving |
Related
My other favorite cake recipes? Try these:
- Eggless Ras Malai Tres Leches Cake Bars
- Fresh Strawberry Pound Cake - Easy Recipe!
- Date and walnut cake (no refined sugar, eggless, whole wheat)
- Moist & Delicious Mango Semolina Vegan Cake
Ingredients
For Soaking
- 1 cup dark rum / orange juice / apple juice if using juices, add less sugar to the batter.
Wet ingredients
- ¾ cup oil
- 1 cup yogurt
- ½ cup hot milk
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
Dried Fruits & Nuts
- 16 oz fruit cake mix or tutti frutti
- 1 tablespoon golden raisins
- 1 tbsp black raisins
- 2 tablespoon walnuts chopped
- 2 tablespoon cashews halved
Spices
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg powder
Instructions
- Soak mixed dried fruits and chopped nuts in rum or brandy, or in orange juice for a non-alcoholic version, let them sit for a few hours or days, or I gently simmer in juice and cool.
- Make caramel by melting sugar with a 3 tablespoons of water until amber, carefully adding hot water, then cooling it completely.
- Preheat the oven to 320 F and grease and line your loaf or round tin with parchment paper or by dusting flour.
- Whisk together all dry ingredients in a bowl: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices.
- In another bowl, whisk yogurt, oil, hot milk, vanilla and cooled caramel, mixing until smooth. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet in batches.
- Dust flour on the soaked dried fruits and nuts to coat them.
- Toss soaked fruits and nuts in a bit of flour, then gently fold them into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the pan, level the top, tap out air bubbles if any and bake for 60 minutes until deep brown and a toothpick comes out mostly clean. Depending on the type of your oven, if could either take 10 mins or less time, so I suggest keep an eye our after 50 minutes.
- Cool the cake in the pan briefly, then on a rack, and ideally rest it wrapped for 12-24 hours.
- Brush with alcohol for that authentic bakery taste before slicing and serving.
Video
Nutrition
Ingredients
For Soaking
- 1 cup dark rum / orange juice / apple juice if using juices, add less sugar to the batter.
Wet ingredients
- ¾ cup oil
- 1 cup yogurt
- ½ cup hot milk
- ¼ cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups 2 tbsp all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
Dried Fruits & Nuts
- 16 oz fruit cake mix or tutti frutti
- 1 tablespoon golden raisins
- 1 tbsp black raisins
- 2 tablespoon walnuts chopped
- 2 tablespoon cashews halved
Spices
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg powder
Instructions
- Soak mixed dried fruits and chopped nuts in rum or brandy, or in orange juice for a non-alcoholic version, let them sit for a few hours or days, or I gently simmer in juice and cool.
- Make caramel by melting sugar with a 3 tablespoons of water until amber, carefully adding hot water, then cooling it completely.
- Preheat the oven to 320 F and grease and line your loaf or round tin with parchment paper or by dusting flour.
- Whisk together all dry ingredients in a bowl: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices.
- In another bowl, whisk yogurt, oil, hot milk, vanilla and cooled caramel, mixing until smooth. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet in batches.
- Dust flour on the soaked dried fruits and nuts to coat them.
- Toss soaked fruits and nuts in a bit of flour, then gently fold them into the batter.
- Pour the batter into the pan, level the top, tap out air bubbles if any and bake for 60 minutes until deep brown and a toothpick comes out mostly clean. Depending on the type of your oven, if could either take 10 mins or less time, so I suggest keep an eye our after 50 minutes.
- Cool the cake in the pan briefly, then on a rack, and ideally rest it wrapped for 12–24 hours.
- Brush with alcohol for that authentic bakery taste before slicing and serving.
