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Miracle Three-Ingredient Christmas Cake

The easiest-ever fruitcake! Just before serving, dust with icing sugar, using paper doily cut-outs or snowflake stencils to create festive patterns. For variations on this recipe see my blog. If you're putting together a menu around this cake see my Summer Christmas Menu for inspiration.

Annabel Langbein Media

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Miracle Three-Ingredient Christmas Cake
1kg mixed dried fruit
2½ cups (600ml) milk or almond milk
2¾ cups self-raising flour or gluten-free self-raising flour 
1 tbsp sherry, rum or whiskey, to brush (optional)
icing sugar, to dust (optional)

© Annabel Langbein Media 
https://www.annabel-langbein.com/recipes/three-ingredient-christmas-cake/646

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Prep time:: 5 mins + standing time
Cook time:: 1 hour, 15 mins
Makes:: 1 medium cake

1kg mixed dried fruit
2½ cups (600ml) milk or almond milk
2¾ cups self-raising flour or gluten-free self-raising flour
1 tbsp sherry, rum or whiskey, to brush (optional)
icing sugar, to dust (optional)

Place dried fruit in a bowl, cover with milk and leave to soak overnight in the fridge.

The next day, preheat oven to 160°C and line a medium (23cm diameter) springform cake tin with baking paper.

Stir flour into fruit mixture until evenly combined and smooth into prepared tin. Bake until it is risen, set and golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean (check after about 1¼ hours and return to oven for a little longer if needed). Remove from oven and, while still hot, brush with sherry, rum or whisky, if using. Cool in the tin before turning out. Stored in an airtight container, it will keep for 3-4 weeks.

Just before serving, dust with icing sugar, using paper doily cut-outs or snowflake stencils to create festive patterns.

Tips

For a vegan version use almond milk instead of milk. Fruit juice and ginger ale also work well.
For a gluten-free version use gluten-free self-raising flour and if you are highly sensitive to gluten use sherry or rum instead of whiskey.

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47 comments

My fruit is soaking but after reading all the comments I am confused about the best way to cook this recipe.Is 160 degrees fan forced?I dont want my cake to be overcooked on the sides, dont want pudding and dont want it to be raw in the middle.Would it be better to cook the cake at a slower temp and not on fan forced.

julienne July 20, 2019

This is a great cake:-) not too sweet or dry. The ingredients really make a difference. I used Chambord liqueur and it worked well. Thank you Annabel!

emacananea December 24, 2017

i HAVE MADE THIS WITH - GINGER ALE - ADD MORE GINGER TO THE FRUIT MIX ORANGE JUICE AND ORANGE LIQUER COCO COLA - ADD NUTS ALMOND LIQUER - CHERRIES AND ALMOND = CHEERIES OR CRANBERRY JUICE THEY ALL SEEMS TO WORK WELL AND GIVE VARIETY I LIKE EXPERMENTING :)

valgardiner December 12, 2017

HI Vallouise - yes the cake will keep wrapped and in a cool, dark place. It will also freeze well and work in smaller tins. Happy christmas cooking!

Annabel Langbein December 05, 2017

Will this cake keep for longer than 3-4 weeks if it's wrapped in grease proof and stored in an airtight container? Would it b suitable to freeze also? And would the recipe work if I was a few in the tuna fish cans, like one of your other recipes? Thanks so much, I'm making some cakes for the school fare, and this recipe sounds so easy!

Vallouise November 06, 2017

This cake is well decorated and looking very beautiful, The recipe of this cake that you provided is also very simple. Now I am going to make it. Last time i made such beautiful cakes from : http://www.cakengifts.in/birthday-cakes http://www.cakengifts.in/anniversary-cakes http://www.cakengifts.in/cake-delivery-in-dwarka-delhi http://www.cakengifts.in/cake-delivery-in-connaught-place-delhi http://www.cakengifts.in/cake-delivery-in-defence-colony-delhi http://www.cakengifts.in/cake-delivery-in-dhaula-kuan-delhi

CakenGiftsin May 26, 2017

Ate cake today. Didn't bother icing; my granddaughter made some nice marzipan fruits. The family , who don't usually don't like rich christmas cake liked it.- I didn't like it as much as my usual cake, but we all have different tastes .Next time I will add a bit more spice and stick to milk .

viv2 December 26, 2016

Hi Viv, The dried fruit provides the sweetness in the cake. Milk too has a sweet flavour to it. We have lots of great feedback about this recipe so hope you give it another go. Annabel's recipes are tested using a fan oven - but every oven is different - and if often takes a while to get used to a new oven. Merry Christmas!

Annabel Langbein December 22, 2016

Hi Lou - The cake should be moist, light, flavourful fruitcake. Sounds like it might need more cooking to 'dry' the cake out. Try lowering the temperature if the edges and outside are browning too quickly. Hope this helps!

Annabel Langbein December 22, 2016

Decided to make this cake this year to save on costs. I used tropical fruit juice as it was actually cheaper than milk (thanks fonterra) and I thought might bring nice pineapple flavour because my previous christmas cakes contained crushed pineapple. Didn't enjoy the spoon after putting into tin though, mix wasn't sweet enough . Anyone else notice this but have cake turn out fine ? I have never had a fan oven and have never had problem with undercooked centres, butI do have to use lower temps to avoid overcooked edges.

viv2 December 10, 2016

What should the final consistency of this cake be? Mine was more like a pudding than a cake. Is that how it should be?

Louagi September 06, 2016

Just made this cake, it was easy to make and tastes great. Very happy because I'm not much of a baker but wanted to do something this Christmas that wasn't bought in a shop. Thanks Annabelle.

Kimberley01 December 20, 2015

I am really keen to try this cake, particularly as it is egg free. Does the fruit provide enough sweetness? I have never made a cake without adding sugar before.

daylep December 19, 2015

Hi Mitch - You can soak the fruit in juice and brandy - try 2 cups of juice and 1/2 cup brandy. Happy cooking!

Annabel Langbein December 15, 2015

I have just baked my first Christmas cake following this recipe but with a few modifications. I swapped the milk for Pinot noir (2cups) and Cointreau (1/2 cup). I put in some walnuts, almonds, figs, crystallised ginger along with the fruit mix to make up 1kg. Drizzled with Drambuie after baking. I added some baking spices to the fruit mix for even more flavour. Tastes amazing with Lewis road butter! Thanks for the recipe, I won't be buying another $45 Christmas cake again!

HeyMel December 14, 2015

I have just discovered your web site and I want to tell you it is the easiest one I have ever used! Thankyou. I am a new fan from Alaska(50 years here) and I will continue to be a supportive fan. Best to you this holiday. Nicky D

nicky donald December 12, 2015

Oh my goodness, this was amazing. Talk about simple to make, plus so many different possibilities to try out. I made two cakes to give away. Both families enjoyed their cake. Thanks so much.

crazykiwi December 29, 2014

Thank You very much Annabel. My first ever ever Christmas cake and it tastes and looked amazing. I used juice instead of milk and it was all good. Unfortunately I have to make another one as the first one is gone before I even got to ice it. Question: can I use brandy to soak the fruit in? can I use it with juice and brandy and what portions would that be? :)

mitch205_99 December 01, 2014

Hi Annabel, do you have a moist recipe for small xmas cakes, large muffin size. Would like to make as presents,will simple ingredients.

madcow November 12, 2014

Great recipe! I used coffee as the liquid, then half coffee and half coconut cream; next was Guinness and then ginger beer! all are successful with different tastes. Thanks for a fantastic recipee

RevPaul July 31, 2014

Annabel, Thank you this has become my favorite cake, I make 2 at once, and give them to my sons to take home with them, they love them too. Sometimes I add mixed spice & cinnamon as well, I also make one for myself, everyone loves them Thanks you so much easiest fruit cake to make, and best tasting fruit cake too :-) Maureen

zazu1 July 31, 2014

Hi Sara, Other people have used milk alternatives, fruit juice and even coffee with success. Happy cooking!

Annabel Langbein July 23, 2014

Hi Annabel, I would like to attempt this for my son who is dairy, wheat, soy and egg intolerant. Do you think it would work with alternative milk such as rice or coconut and gluten free flour blend? Thanks!

SaraEaston December 22, 2013

I substitute the milk with a carton of iced coffee,gives it a bit of a bang.

BillBee December 21, 2013

Just made my first Christmas cake. Thanks so much for this recipe. Very easy and turned out just great :)

CushlaDonnelly December 20, 2013

Hi Annabel, Thanks for answering my question re the milk. I made the cake with full cream milk. When I went to add the flour the fruit had absorbed all the milk, I needed to add some more milk to moisten the dry ingredients. The cake is waiting to drive from Auckland to Upper Hutt the proof will be in the eating. Your meringues look superb, thought you might like to try this one egg white recipe, every time I make these they are very yummy. It is an old family recipe of a friend and even though there is many one egg recipes out there this one is amazing. 1egg white 6oz caster sugar. Put these two ingredients in bowl and leave to soak overnight. Next day beat for 2 minutes, then add 1 teaspoon vinegar( I always use white vinegar) 1/2 teaspoon vanilla essence and 2 tablespoons of boiling water. Beat until very thick about 15 minutes, fold in 2 teaspoons baking powder. Bake 3/4 hour at 250of or 121oc and leave in oven until cold. Cheers, Helen

porsche December 20, 2013

which cream will be great for frosting,any ideas.

петяспасова December 20, 2013

I would like to make small individual cakes to make as gifts for my co workers would this recipe still work and do I need to alter the cooking time?

Creativecook December 18, 2013

Hi Annabel,i am from Croatia,Europe and we dont have self-raising flover,so can i take flover with baking powder,tnx

BilaćGordana December 18, 2013

I should have read to the end - I see you answered my question in the recipe. Keeps 3-4 weeks!

sgilmore December 18, 2013

This sounds so easy. How long will it keep do you know?

sgilmore December 18, 2013

Hi Francesca - That does sound odd. Did you have your oven on fan bake? All my recipes use fan bake. If that's not the problem, perhaps it's a good idea to get your oven checked. Good luck!

Annabel Langbein December 18, 2013

Hi Porsche - It should be fine with any kind of milk. Someone even told me they made it with fruit juice and it worked out fine. Let me know how you get on.

Annabel Langbein December 18, 2013

Hi Annabel, HELP! I tried this cake as have never made a Christmas cake before and it won't cook in the middle - still quite raw after 2 1/4 hrs!! It is in the correct size tine and I did everything exactly as it says in the recipe. I am leaving it in to continue to bake at a slightly lower temp. How can I rescue this? The only reason I can think of is that maybe my oven temperature gauge may be faulty?

Francesca December 16, 2013

Hi Annabel, i am about to make this cake and just realised that I only buy trim milk and thought that since the cake has not butter perhaps you need whole milk to make it. Is that so? Thanks for all your wonderful recipes and cook books which I have given as presents, must treat myself to one! Merry Christmas and every best wish for 2014 Helen

porsche December 16, 2013

Hi aleenac - You are right that 1 metric cup is 250ml, so strictly speaking 2.5 cups would be 625ml, but in the context of this recipe the extra 25ml (equivalent to less than 2 tbsp) won't be missed.

admin December 12, 2013

Hi everyone - Sorry for the confusion - the recipe above, with mixed dried fruit, is correct. We haven't tested it with fruit mince, although I suspect it would be even more delicious! If you give it a go, let us know how you get on.

admin December 12, 2013

Hi I would love to see a photo of the cut cake to see how dark the cake is. Is this possible? I have the ingredients so very tempted to make this.

Maree-KentCrawford December 10, 2013

Hi Annabel I've just made your Three Ingredient Cake - It's delicious, so Thank You for your inspiration. Helen

helenjc8 December 08, 2013

where can I find comment answers

joce December 08, 2013

I'm intrigued by this recipe but like your other commenters am wondering whether dried fruit or mince fruit should be used as you've mentioned both - or maybe both work?

DebbieHarding December 08, 2013

Hi Annabel, I've made this recipe using orange juice and it is great, can you tell me what the difference is with using milk. Will try this recipe but milk does put me off a little bit thanks ;-)

Ice057 December 06, 2013

I cannot wait to make this cake but I noticed the recipe calls for 2 1/2 cups (600ml) of milk. I always thought that 1 cup = 250 ml so what is the correct amount of milk to soak the fruit?

aleenac December 05, 2013

Just read your christmas newsletter, I am with you - 3 ingredients for a christmas cake! Will get the fruit mix tomorrow and thats the weekend baking!!! Thanks so much for the wonderful recipes

SueJex December 05, 2013

Hi Annabel, In the Christmas newsletter I received from you regarding this recipe it states to use 1kg of fruit mince but in this recipe it says to use dried fruit ? Cant wait to try this recipe but want to get it right, many thanks

jeanettenz December 05, 2013

Thank you and Merry Christmas to you and your family, Keep the good recipes coming.

janbuckley December 05, 2013

thanks,love your recipes from new book,will try it.

петяспасова December 04, 2013