Last year I made a raw Christmas pudding so it’s only natural I took a stab at making Christmas cake this year.
These are so simple to make, aside from having to wash the food processor up, do I mention that every time I make something like this? I probably do. It’s just bended dates with spices and ground almonds and brandy soaked fruit mixed in then rolled into balls. So much quicker than baking a Christmas cake which takes...about 3 hours? These can be ready in less than an hour.
You can keep them in the fridge or pop them in the freezer so they don’t get eaten every time you open the fridge. I know these are raw but they taste delicious warmed and if you want to step it up a notch add some brandy cream which I have a Vegan and non Vegan recipe for on the blog.
You will need
115g/4 oz sultanas
55g/2 oz currents
40g/1½ oz golden raisins
40g/1½ oz glace cherries/dried cranberries
1-2 tbsp brandy
140g/5 oz dates + water to soak
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp mixed spice
⅛ tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp blackstrap molasses
8 tbsp ground almonds
Put the sultanas, currents, golden raisins and glace cherries in a bowl, pour over the brandy and set aside to soak stirring occasionally.
If your dates are dry place in a bowl, cover with warm water and leave to soak for about 10 minutes. After the dates have soaked, drain and place in a food processor with the cinnamon, mixed spice, nutmeg and molasses. Once the dates have formed a smooth paste add in the ground almonds until the mixture becomes less sticky and forms more of a ball, you may need to add a little more or less depending on how moist your dates are. Add in the brandy soaked fruit and pulse gently until the mixture is evenly distributed but make sure the fruit stays mostly whole and doesn’t get blended. Roll the mixture into balls and put in the fridge to set.
Makes 18
No comments:
Post a Comment