Jamaican Fruit Cake Recipe

Here’s a recipe for Jamaican Fruit Cake, also known as Jamaican Christmas Cake. It’s a rich and flavorful dessert packed with dried fruits and warm spices. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1/4 cup dark rum (optional)
• 1/4 cup red wine (optional)
• 1 cup molasses
• 1 cup finely chopped dried mixed fruits (raisins, currants, cherries, prunes)
• 1/2 cup chopped candied mixed fruits (pineapple, papaya, orange peel)
• 1/2 cup chopped mixed nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds)
• Zest of 1 lemon
• Zest of 1 orange

For the soaking syrup:

• 1/2 cup dark rum (optional)
• 1/2 cup red wine (optional)
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 cup granulated sugar

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 325°F (165°C). Grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan or line it with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. If using rum and red wine, add them gradually while beating the mixture.
5. Stir in the molasses until well combined.
6. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing until just incorporated.
7. Fold in the dried fruits, candied fruits, chopped nuts, lemon zest, and orange zest. Make sure they are evenly distributed throughout the batter.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
9. Bake in the preheated oven for 1 hour and 45 minutes to 2 hours, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
10. While the cake is baking, prepare the soaking syrup. In a saucepan, combine the rum, red wine, orange juice, lemon juice, water, and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Simmer for an additional 5 minutes, then remove from heat and let it cool.
11. Once the cake is baked, remove it from the oven and let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then, transfer it to a wire rack.
12. While the cake is still warm, use a toothpick or skewer to poke several holes all over the top.
13. Slowly pour the soaking syrup over the warm cake, allowing it to soak into the holes and saturate the cake. Reserve some syrup for additional soaking later, if desired.
14. Let the cake cool completely on the wire rack. Once cooled, you can wrap it in plastic wrap or aluminum foil and store it in an airtight container for a few days to allow the flavors to meld.
15. Optionally, you can periodically brush the cake with additional soaking syrup over the course of a few days to enhance its moisture

If you don’t have time to make your Fruit cake from scratch try Annilu Jamaican Fruit Cake Mix. Annilu Jamaican Fruit Cake Mix is authentic as it gets. Just add 3 eggs and a 1/4 lb of butter, mix bake and serve. Annilu Jamaican Fruit Cake Mix is economical, convenient and easy to prepare.