Christmas is a time of joy and celebrations....its also a time of baking. Back in Kerala, all the Christian families are so busy in the process of making different kinds of special snacks. They also are famous for making home-made wine. Friends & neighbors usually gift others with a bottle of their special home-made wine and a plum cake....those wonderful taste still linger in my mouth.
This Christmas I decided to make a special plum cake along with a special sweet snack. Plum cakes are a kind of rich fruit cake. The richness comes from the fact that the fruits used in this cakes are dried fruits along with nuts. Some also include candied fruits in this cake. ( I didn't use them. You can get them from grocery stores or you can make them at home)
INGREDIENTS
Black Raisins - 1 1/2 cups
Golden Raisins - 1 1/2 cups
Dates - 1 Cup
Dried figs - 1 Cup (if available)
Dark Grape juice - as required
Cashew nuts - 1 1/2 Cup
Pistachios - 1/2 Cup
Silvered Almonds - 1 Cup
Finely shredded orange zest - 2 Tbsp
Freshly squeezed orange juice - 1/2 cup
All-purpose flour - 3 Cups
Baking Powder - 1 1/2 Tbsp
Butter - 1 1/2 stick
Eggs - 6
Sugar - 3 Cups + 1 Cup (for caramelizing)
Water - 1/2 cup
Cinnamon powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Cloves powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Ginger powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Vanilla essence - 2 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp
METHOD
Take the raisins, dates & dried figs in a bowl and pour the grape juice over it to cover the entire fruits. If you are using candied fruits reduce the amount of raisins. Keep it closed airtight at room temperature for 2 weeks. You can also use wine or rum or brandy instead of the grape juice.
Coarsely chop the nuts except the almonds if they are too big and keep aside. Bring the butter and egg to room temperature before starting preparation.
In a pan take the 1 cup sugar and place in high heat. When the sugar starts melting pour 2-3 Tbsp of water into it. Do not stir. Gently swirl the pan as the sugar melts. Wait till all the sugar melts and you should get a light amber color. Adjust the heat if necessary. If the color gets too dark it will make the cake too bitter. Once caramelized add the 1/2 cup of water into it and stir the contents till dissolved.
Sift together the flour and baking powder and set aside.
Drain the raisins, dates and figs from the juice. Coat the nuts and the raisin mixture with some flour and set aside.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Line two 5"x 10" loaf pans with parchment paper or a 10" x 3" round cake pan and set aside.
In a mixing bowl beat the butter till soft. To it add the sugar little by little. Beat together after each addition. Once the sugar is added completely start adding the egg one by one. Beat after each egg is added until its incorporated into the butter mix. When all the eggs are added beat till you get a smooth creamy mixture. Now slowly add the caramelized sugar, the spices, salt and vanilla extract. Lightly mix after each addition. Add the flour mixture and fold it with a rubber spatula till the whole mixture becomes a smooth paste. To this add the orange juice and orange zest and combine together. The entire batter should be thick but pourable.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans. Fill only up to 3/4 of the pans. Tap the pan on the kitchen surface to let out air bubbles. Bake for about 1 hour. ( Check the cake in between) If a tooth pick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean the cake is done. if not bake for another 5-10 minutes and check.
Let the cakes remain in the pan for 5 minutes. Then remove them and place on cooling rack. Let them cool completely. Store in an airtight container. The cake can be kept in room temperature. If you need more shelf-life for the cake cover it with wax paper, wrap it with plastic film and then cover with aluminium paper and refrigerate. Before serving the refrigerated cake heat tyhe oven to 350 F and warm up the cake for 5-10 minutes.
This Christmas I decided to make a special plum cake along with a special sweet snack. Plum cakes are a kind of rich fruit cake. The richness comes from the fact that the fruits used in this cakes are dried fruits along with nuts. Some also include candied fruits in this cake. ( I didn't use them. You can get them from grocery stores or you can make them at home)
Black Raisins - 1 1/2 cups
Golden Raisins - 1 1/2 cups
Dates - 1 Cup
Dried figs - 1 Cup (if available)
Dark Grape juice - as required
Cashew nuts - 1 1/2 Cup
Pistachios - 1/2 Cup
Silvered Almonds - 1 Cup
Finely shredded orange zest - 2 Tbsp
Freshly squeezed orange juice - 1/2 cup
All-purpose flour - 3 Cups
Baking Powder - 1 1/2 Tbsp
Butter - 1 1/2 stick
Eggs - 6
Sugar - 3 Cups + 1 Cup (for caramelizing)
Water - 1/2 cup
Cinnamon powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Cloves powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Ginger powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Vanilla essence - 2 tsp
Salt - 1 tsp
METHOD
Take the raisins, dates & dried figs in a bowl and pour the grape juice over it to cover the entire fruits. If you are using candied fruits reduce the amount of raisins. Keep it closed airtight at room temperature for 2 weeks. You can also use wine or rum or brandy instead of the grape juice.
Coarsely chop the nuts except the almonds if they are too big and keep aside. Bring the butter and egg to room temperature before starting preparation.
In a pan take the 1 cup sugar and place in high heat. When the sugar starts melting pour 2-3 Tbsp of water into it. Do not stir. Gently swirl the pan as the sugar melts. Wait till all the sugar melts and you should get a light amber color. Adjust the heat if necessary. If the color gets too dark it will make the cake too bitter. Once caramelized add the 1/2 cup of water into it and stir the contents till dissolved.
Sift together the flour and baking powder and set aside.
Drain the raisins, dates and figs from the juice. Coat the nuts and the raisin mixture with some flour and set aside.
Pre-heat the oven to 350 F. Line two 5"x 10" loaf pans with parchment paper or a 10" x 3" round cake pan and set aside.
In a mixing bowl beat the butter till soft. To it add the sugar little by little. Beat together after each addition. Once the sugar is added completely start adding the egg one by one. Beat after each egg is added until its incorporated into the butter mix. When all the eggs are added beat till you get a smooth creamy mixture. Now slowly add the caramelized sugar, the spices, salt and vanilla extract. Lightly mix after each addition. Add the flour mixture and fold it with a rubber spatula till the whole mixture becomes a smooth paste. To this add the orange juice and orange zest and combine together. The entire batter should be thick but pourable.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans. Fill only up to 3/4 of the pans. Tap the pan on the kitchen surface to let out air bubbles. Bake for about 1 hour. ( Check the cake in between) If a tooth pick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean the cake is done. if not bake for another 5-10 minutes and check.
Let the cakes remain in the pan for 5 minutes. Then remove them and place on cooling rack. Let them cool completely. Store in an airtight container. The cake can be kept in room temperature. If you need more shelf-life for the cake cover it with wax paper, wrap it with plastic film and then cover with aluminium paper and refrigerate. Before serving the refrigerated cake heat tyhe oven to 350 F and warm up the cake for 5-10 minutes.
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