This rich, moist and boozy fruit cake has to be the ultimate Vegan Christmas Cake - so simple to make and incredibly tasty.
Christmas is a time of year when vegans can face pitying looks for not being able to 'join in' with so many traditional foods of the season. But with just the smallest of tweaks, much festive fayre can easily be made vegan, and this traditional rich, moist fruit cake is a perfect example.
Don't be put off by the long cooking time - this is one of the easiest fruit cakes I've made, and the 'hands on' time is actually fairly minimal. After feeding the cake with your choice of tipple over the course of a few weeks, step-by-step photos show you how to marzipan and ice the cake, just in time for the Christmas festivities.
Here's a quick how-to video which will show you the basics of what's involved:
This recipe is based on my Mum's top secret fruit cake recipe, which is easily the best fruit cake I've tried and has the benefit of being both simple to make and incredibly moist, with a lovely rich, fruity flavour. I've made it Christmassy with a few festive additions, (black treacle, glacé cherries, and your choice of brandy, sherry or amaretto), and made it vegan simply by using dairy-free margarine in place of butter, and substituting a chia or flax seed mix in place of eggs. Don't panic if you haven't used this substitution before, it is incredibly easy.
There's no need for fancy kitchen gadgets here - the cake mixture is made entirely in a saucepan, then poured straight into the baking tin. Make sure you use your biggest saucepan - when you add the bicarbonate of soda the mixture fizzes up quite a bit, and could cause some serious spillage in a small saucepan!
Decorating your Christmas Cake
Here are some step-by-step instructions for finishing off your cake, which ideally should mature for at least a few weeks before you start marzipanning and icing.
Of course the way you decorate your cake is entirely up to you - why not browse Pinterest for some festive ideas?
I usually go for plain white icing with fresh greenery and holly on top, but this year have tried something a little different with a pale blue snow scene, which is easy to do and looks quite striking.
For the decorating stages, you will need:
- Your choice of alcohol (brandy, sherry or amaretto - check they are vegan) - or skip this step for a non-alcoholic cake.
- apricot jam
- icing sugar for dusting
- 1kg ready-to roll marzipan (check it is vegan)
- 1kg ready-to-roll sugarpaste (check it is vegan)
- blue food colouring
- white writing icing (check it is vegan)
How to Feed your Vegan Christamas Cake with alcohol
Feeding the cake with your tipple of choice is a great way both to keep it very moist, and to add lots of festive flavour. Brandy, sherry or amaretto all work well, (just check that they are vegan) - I've used amaretto this year.
- Prick the cake all over with a cocktail stick or skewer - the holes should be just a few centimetres apart.
- Drizzle a few tablespoons of your chosen alcohol over the top of the cake, so that it trickles into all the holes.
- Repeat the process every few days or weekly until you decide to marzipan and ice the cake.
How to cover your Vegan Christmas Cake with Marzipan
4. Use a piece of string or tape measure to measure the cake up one side, along the top and down the other side.
5. On a surface dusted in icing sugar, roll out the marzipan to a large square just a little bigger than your cake measurement, so that it will drape over the whole cake in one piece.
6. Heat 2-3 tbsp apricot jam in a small bowl in the microwave (or a small saucepan), and use a pastry brush to brush it all over the top and sides of the cake. This will act like a glue to stick the marzipan in place.
7. Pick up the marzipan, (draping it over your rolling pin makes this easier), and place it on the cake, smoothing down the top. Trim off any excess at the corners with a sharp knife, and smooth down to create fairly sharp corners. You can buy a plastic smoothing tool (see picture below) for a few pounds which makes this job a lot easier, otherwise just use your hands to smooth the marzipan.
How to cover your Christmas Cake with icing
8. Cut off a chunk of about a quarter of the sugarpaste and set aside - this will remain white. Add a few drops of blue colouring to the remaining three quarters and knead well until it is evenly distributed and a solid colour.
9. On a surface dusted with icing sugar, roll out the blue sugarpaste to the same cake measurement as you did the marzipan. Brush the marzipan all over with a little of the alcohol you used to feed the cake (or water), which will help the icing to stick.
10. Pick up the icing, draping it over your rolling pin as before, and smooth it over the top of the marzipan. Trim the corners with a sharp knife and use your hands or a smoothing tool to give it a smooth and neat finish all over.
How to Decorate your Vegan Christmas Cake
11. Use a piece of string or tape measure to measure right around the edge of the cake. Take the white sugarpaste, and roll it into a very long, thin sausage shape roughly the same length. Use your rolling pin to roll the sausage flat into a strip about 3cm wide. If you run out of space, you can cut it in half and smooth down the join when you stick the two pieces to the cake.
12. Use a sharp knife to trim one of the long edges so that it is as straight as possible, then cut the other long edge into a zig-zag pattern to look like snow-capped mountains.
13. Brush one side of the icing with a little water, then carefully stick it around the base of the cake. Don't panic if the icing breaks - just use a little water to smooth it back together.
14. Finally, use the writing icing with a fine nozzle to pipe dots in a random pattern all over the sides of the cake, patting each one with your finger just after piping it to smooth down any spikes.
And voilà, your vegan Christmas cake is complete! It will store for weeks in an airtight tin, ready for cutting for tea on Christmas Day.
Of course, if you're not a boozy fruit cake kinda person, you might prefer to take a look at these recipes from blogging friends....
- Chloe's Vegan Gingerbread Men from Baked by Clo
- Kate's Vegan Pumpkin Cake with Ginger Frosting from Veggie Desserts
- Rhian's Gluten Free Vegan Gingerbread Loaf Cake from Rhian's Recipes
or my:
- Vegan Gingerbread Cupcakes with cinnamon icing
- Ultimate Vegan Mince Pies with 'cream cheese' pastry
- Vegan Chocolate Yule Log
- Jammy Christmas Star Biscuits
Vegan in 15 Cookbook
There are plenty of similarly quick and easy recipes in my new book, ‘Vegan in 15'*.
Hop over to Amazon for a look. Thanks for your support!
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Reader Testimonials
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "I love this recipe and it’s been my ‘go to’ fruit cake recipe for a couple of years now. There’s no need to wait for Christmas!" Helen
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "This cake recipe is great. Instructions are well written and easy to follow. All the ingredients can be purchased in a UK supermarket. Lovely and moist and not sickly sweet, this cake is just right. Highly recommended." Debbie
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Very impressed with the recipe and the fact it uses commonly used ingredients." Emma
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ "Just want to congratulate you on an awesome vegan cake recipe! My son is allergic to milk and missed out on proper Christmas cake last year. I tried 3 or 4 recipes, but this is the best! Not crumbly, at all, lovely flavour. I made this for his School Christmas fair and it worked perfectly. i got several comments on how great this was. I know I will be making this for years to come." Louise
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The Ultimate Vegan Christmas Cake
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp ground/milled chia or flax seeds
- 110 ml water
- 800 g mixed fruit (or your own mix of currants, raisins, chopped figs, chopped dates or chopped prunes plus a few tablespoons mixed peel)
- 200 g natural glacé cherries
- 175 g light brown sugar
- 50 g black treacle
- 340 g dairy-free margarine
- 500 ml water
- 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 225 g self-raising flour
- 225 g wholemeal self-raising flour (or plain wholemeal flour plus 3 tsp baking powder)
- 4-6 tbsp brandy, amaretto or sherry (check it is vegan)
- 4 tbsp apricot jam
- 1 kg ready-made marzipan
- 1 kg ready-made sugarpaste
Instructions
- Mix the chia or flax seeds with the 110ml water, and place in the fridge.
- Take a very large saucepan and tip in the mixed fruit, glacé cherries, light brown sugar, black treacle, dairy-free margarine and 500ml water. Bring to the boil then simmer for 15 minutes, stirring from time to time.
- When cooking time is up, carefully stir through the bicarbonate of soda, (the mixture will fizz and rise up the sides of the saucepan so make sure there is enough room to prevent spillages!). Set the mixture aside to cool completely.
- Whist you are waiting for it to cool, grease a 22cm round or square baking tin, and line it with a double layer of baking parchment. Preheat the oven to 170°C (fan) / 325°F / gas mark 3.
- When the mixture is cool, stir in the chia or flax seed mixture, (which should have turned very gloopy), and both types of flour. Mix well so that no lumps of flour remain.
- Tip the mixture into your lined baking tin. Bake for 1 hour, then turn the oven down to 130°C (fan) / 275°F / Gas Mark 1 and bake for a further 45-55 minutes, or until an inserted skewer comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin. To store until needed, wrap in a layer of baking parchment then a layer of foil and keep in an airtight tin or container.
- A few days before marzipanning, feed the cake with brandy, amaretto or sherry by pricking all over with a cocktail stick then pouring over 4-6 tbsp of your chosen tipple. You can repeat this process three or four times for a boozier cake.
- For instructions on covering the cake with marzipan and icing, see step-by-step photos in the post above.
As good as any non-vegan Christmas cake I've ever made - and easier too. So good I'm making another one to get us through January!
Ha! Brilliant - I love it - Post Christmas Cake, everyone should do it! X
I’ve been making Delia’s Christmas cake for years, however after having to cut down on dairy and egg I thought I’d give this a try. It’s every bit as delicious and moist as our usual family favourite and no one could tell it was vegan. The biggest fan is my 7 year old. I’ll definitely be making this again, Next time I’m going to add a few almonds in to the mix as well. Thanks Kate, xxx
That's great to hear - thanks Jenny! X
Super Vegan Christmas cake...just made this and used 3 x 6 inch cake pans. Each one weighed about 850 grams. Perfect to give away. I did add some cinnamon, ginger and all spice but not sure it made any difference. Not sure about the timings but I think I baked them for about 45 mins at the higher temp and 30 mins reduced temp. The Cake was nice and moist, classic fruit cake taste and held together really well when sliced. I have not added any alcohol and probably won't do the marzipan icing either. Think it's fine as is. Will definitely be using this recipe again...thanks!
That's great to hear, thanks Frances!
Hi. Is it possible to use Aquafina in this recipe instead of the flax/ chia seeds and water?
I would think so - I haven't tried it so can't say for definite but I think it would work fine as it is such a moist cake with so much fruit in. Please let me know how it turns out if you give it a go! Kate x
Can I have the fruitcake plain,with no marzipan or icing?
Yes absolutely, it is very moist so delicious on its own. I often use this recipe throughout the year to make a plain fruit cake.
Hi Kate
Would like to try this recipe as this will be my first vegan Xmas. Can you just clarify when the bicarbonate of soda is added as I can’t find a mention of it in the method? Is it boiled with the fruit or added in with the flour?
Many thanks
Jenny
Hi Jenny, I'm SO glad you asked this, weirdly one of the steps of the recipe had somehow got deleted this week so I've just added back in from a previous backup. Thanks so much for spotting that and letting me know! Kate
Hello,
I'm going to make this for my Dads 70th Birthday as fruit cake is his favourite but we eat vegan and my Daughter can't eat eggs anyway.
Can I soak the fruit in alcohol the day before? Will this ruin the recipe at all or make it too moist?
Thank you.
I love this recipe and it's been my 'go to' fruit cake recipe for a couple of years now. There's no need to wait for Christmas!
I made the cake today and it's going to be perfect for morning and afternoon tea and supper while I'm in lockdown on my own on my rural property in New Zealand 🙂
Hi Kate,
I am going to try my very first Christmas Cake. Is it possible to replace eggs wih Aquafaba?
Would it deflate on mixing with alcohol and butter?
Thank you 🙂
I am keen to try my first vegan Christmas Cake! I'd like to try Aquafaba (chickpea brine) as an egg replacer. Can you tell me how many eggs you have replaced in this recipe? I see in the comments above you said 4 eggs, but I thought that the standard measure for a flax/chia egg was 1 tbsp per egg (so therefore only 2 eggs replaced)? Thanks
This is my first attempt at a homemade vegan Christmas cake. Very impressed with the recipe and the fact it uses commonly used ingredients. My cake is currently in the oven and look forward to eating it over the festive season.
I’ve just taken the cake out of the oven and sadly it’s burnt on top - i turned the high temperature down after only 30 minutes as I could smell it catching and then it only needed another hour at the lower temp. I followed the recipe and oven temps exactly so maybe I have a ‘hot’ oven. I’m hoping that I can simply slice off the burnt bits!!
Hi Kate
this is the most awesome cake but I've made it two years running now and it's a little too moist and falls apart - not sure what I am doing wrong. I left out the water and chia seeds last Christmas but still too moist even to add brandy.
Hi Barbara, It might be that you need to cook it for longer - all ovens are different and some people say they have added up to an extra 45 minutes to the cooking time. Hope that helps. Kate
This was delicious Kate, and has been much appreciated by us and by guests. I just plain iced it.
Also made your Christmas pudding which was excellent too.
Thank you!
Fantastic! So glad to hear it, thanks Alison x
This cake recipe is great. Instructions are well written and easy to follow. All the ingredients can be purchased in a uk supermarket. The cake is lovely and moist and not sickly sweet, if you wanted a sweeter cake perhaps thicker marzipan and icing, but personally this cake is just right.
Highly recommended.
Thanks very much for sharing:)
So glad you liked it - thanks Debbie!
Hi, just want to congratulate you on an awesome vegan cake recipe!
My son is allergic to milk and missed out on proper Christmas cake last year. I tried 3 or 4 recipes, but this is the best! Not crumbly, at all, lovely flavour.
I made this for his School Christmas fair and it worked perfectly. i got several comments on how great this was.
I added a few spoons of spice to make it like my usual Christmas cake (mixed spice and nutmeg), but basically stuck to the recipe. i know i will be making this for years to come.
Fantastic - so great to hear!
Hi Kate, I don't have any treacle, can I use maple syrup or golden syrup instead??
If you can, try to get hold of some treacle as it is what makes this cake so 'Christmassy', but if not yes try golden syrup rather than maple, but use a bit less as it is so sweet!
Great recipe, we used milled flax for ours. Cake rose brilliantly. Decorated with marzipan and a Cosmic design. Trying without alcohol soaking, will post about longevity and moisture of cake. Thank you Kate .
Great to hear!
Hi Kate,
This looks amazing and this year will our first began Xmas so we’re very excited to make all the traditional goodies as vegan .
I have prepared my own vegansweet mince for mince pies etc. and it has sherry in it. Would I be able to use this for the mixed fruit . It would save me preparing another batch kid I have made so much.
Hi - I was wondering - do you think I could substitute half the amount of margarine with refined coconut oil? I just worry about the taste of the margarine.
I’m very keen to make this, and will be adding some spices and nuts as well as some other commenters have mentioned! 🙂
Yes I'm sure that would work fine. Let me know how it goes!
Hi there, am planning to make this cake with my daughter this weekend - however, I really like flaked almonds or other nuts in my fruit cake - can I add any to this recipe? And if so should I receive any of the fruit weights accordingly to allow for the nut inclusion?
Hi Lorna, Yes you can certainly add nuts, no need to reduce the fruit (unless you are planning to add LOTS!!!). Hope it goes well x
Can I substitute whole chia seeds for the ground ones specified? I ask because I see other recipes that used whole ones. Bought the wrong ones, I'm afraid. Thanks!
Hi Rachel, they won't really turn gloopy and egg-like in the same way - if you have any way of whizzing them up in a blender or pestle and mortar that would help a bit! Or else leave them soaking overnight before adding them. Hope it goes well x
Thanks! I ground them up a bit, and they went all gloopy and the cake has come out just fine. Just feeding it with brandy now 🙂 It smells good.
I have this cake in the over at the moment, have made it for my Grandaughter who is vegan and also dairy intolerant, it is my first attempt so I am hoping she loves it, 15mns to go! It looks gorgeous. Report review after Xmas. Thanks lots
Lovely! Let me know how it turns out x