The fairy lights, the Christmas tree, Christmas carol and most importantly the smell of the baked goods wafting in the air. Christmas is incomplete without a fruit cake. There are so many recipes of fruit cake but every time Sonali baked this Tutti Frutti cake, it took her back to the childhood days. The colourful bits of fruits on a slice of a cake looked like jewels to her. And her eyes glistened as a child when her mom cut a slice on the Christmas morning. Here’s a Christmas recipe of a cake, in the regular column, exclusively for Different Truths.  

It is almost Christmas! I love this time of the year as everything seems so magical. The fairy lights, the Christmas tree, Christmas carol and most importantly the smell of the baked goods wafting in the air. Christmas is incomplete without a fruit cake. There are so many recipes of fruit cake but every time I bake this Tutti Frutti cake, it takes me back to my childhood days. The colourful bits of fruits on a slice of cake looked like jewels to me. My eyes glistened as a child when my mom cut a slice on the Christmas morning.

This cake is very simple to bake unlike other fruit cake recipes. The cake comes out soft and spongy and is perfect with a cup of tea. I bake this cake in small loaf tins so that I could keep one for myself and share the rest with my friends. Christmas is all about sharing, isn’t it?

A Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year to All!

Tutti Frutti cake

Recipe

Preparation Time: 15 minutes                         Baking Time: 35-40 minutes Yield: One 8”X5” loaf cake or three mini loaf cakes

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour/maida

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

1 cup granulated sugar/ caster sugar

3 eggs

3/4 cup melted butter, cooled to room temperature

1/3 cup milk at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon orange extract

½ teaspoon cinnamon powder

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder

1 cup tutti frutti mix (see tips)

Method

Pre-heat the oven to 180 C (350 F) and grease and line the bottom of three mini loaf pans with parchment paper.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and the spices in a bowl and mix well. Mix two tablespoons of the flour mixture to the tutti frutti and set aside.

In another large bowl, cream the eggs and the sugar with a whisk or hand blender until light and fluffy and the egg-sugar mixture looks light pale in color. Add in the melted butter, vanilla, and orange extract and mix well.

Gradually add the flour mixture and milk alternately in three additions and mix well with a spatula. Do not over mix the batter. Finally, add the tutti frutti that is coated with flour and fold gently into the batter. Transfer the batter into the prepared pans and bake in the pre-heated oven for 35-40 minutes or a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.

Transfer the pans to a wire rack for 5 minutes and then remove from the pan to cool completely. Slice the cake into thick pieces and serve with coffee or tea of your choice. Enjoy!

Tips

Tutti frutti is an Italian term, which means small bits of candied or chopped fresh fruits soaked in syrup. These are available in shops selling baking products. Coating the fruit mix with flour is important. That way the fruits will not sink at the bottom of the cake once baked. If you do not have orange extract, you may use the zest of an orange.

Food styling and photos by the author

Sonali Chakraborty

Sonali Chakraborty is a food blogger, self-taught food photographer and stylist. She is a true Bong at heart. She loves to travel and listen to music.

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