I do love a good Christmas fruit cake but I find them far too sweet so I’ve created a healthier version that is full of good stuff that will still give you that festive feeling! Hope you enjoy this one. It is super easy to put together and seems to go down well with the family!

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup Organic whole wheat flour (or gf)

• 1 cup Almond flour

• 1 tsp Baking powder

• ½ tsp Baking soda

• ½ tsp Sea salt

• 1 tsp Ground cinnamon

• ½ tsp Ground nutmeg

• ½ cup Coconut oil, melted

• ½ cup Honey or Maple syrup

• 3 Free range eggs

• 1 tsp Vanilla extract

• 1 Apple (peeled and grated)

• ¼ cup Freshly squeezed orange juice

• 1 cup Mixed dried fruits (raisins, chopped dates, apricots)

• ½ cup Chopped nuts (walnuts or almonds)

• Zest of 1 Orange

• Zest of 1 Lemon                            

METHOD

1. Preheat oven to 165 degrees Celsius.  Grease and line a cake pan with parchment paper.

2. Mix all dry ingredients in one bowl with grated apple (apart from dried fruit and nuts)

3. Mix all wet ingredients in another bowl until combined.

4. Combine wet and dry ingredients until just combined.

5. Add dried fruit, nuts, lemon zest and orange zest and fold in till mixture is even. 

6. Pour the batter into the cake tin and smooth the top.  Bake in preheated oven for 40-50 minutes until golden brown.

7. Cool the cake in pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Once cake has cooled, slice and serve.  This cake can also be frozen for convenience to be eaten at a later date.