Follow our fantastic recipes @alowcarblowsugarlifestyle #ketohh
\n\n
This delicious Low Carb Christmas cake tastes of Christmas. It’s fruity with a little spice and you have the option of adding brandy or whisky to it, which in my opinion really tops this cake off. If you want to make this recipe for an everyday cake you can just switch out the rum or brandy. If you’re wanting a celebration cake though I would definitely include it in the recipe. Featuring low carb fruits such as cranberries and blueberries, there are also links in the recipe to show you how to make your own sugar free dried fruit.
\nLow carb, sugar free and gluten free, this great tasting recipe would be great for a crowd as it caters for so many ways of eating. It’s also perfect for diabetics because of the minimal impact it has on blood sugar levels.
\nWho said cutting sugar and reducing the carbs in your life means you have to compromise on food?
\n\n
\n\n
The Color Purple
\nWhen you make this delicious recipe for a Low Carb Fruit Cake, your batter can end up being quite purple. Once baked it turns a dark golden color a little like a golden fruit cake. It can still be a little purple on the inside once you cut it.\n\nWhen a cake uses whole foods and natural products, I never despair over what the colors look like. Blueberries tend to impart a lot of color into batters so it’s unavoidable. Try to gently stir your fruit through the batter at the end to try to avoid over mixing. This might help prevent the colors being overly mixed in.\nStoring Your Low Carb Christmas Cake
\nWhile a traditional fruit cake can have a really long life, this low carb version has a shelf life of about 5 days. The recipe freezes really well and defrosts beautifully. One of my favorite ways to eat this cake once it’s been frozen, is to zap in the microwave to warm it slightly. Top it with home made Low Carb Custard From Scratch for a delicious pudding like dessert.\n\n
\n
Prep Time:10 minutes
\nCook Time:40 minutes
\nTotal Time:50 minutes
\n\n\n\n
Servings: 20 serves
\n\n
\nIngredients
\n\n
\n- \n \t
- ½ cup Sugar Free Dried Cranberries \n \t
- ½ cup Sugar Free Dried Blueberries \n \t
- ¼ cup brandy - can also be switched for ¼ cup whisky or scented tea such as earl grey \n \t
- 4 large eggs \n \t
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract \n \t
- 100 gms melted butter or mild flavored extra virgin olive oil \n \t
- ¼ cup nut milk of choice \n \t
- 2 tablespoons of orange zest/and or lemon zest \n \t
- 220 gms blanched almond meal/almond flour \n \t
- 3 tablespoons coconut flour \n \t
- 4 tablespoons stevia blend /monkfruit blend or ½ cup erythritol or xylitol \n \t
- 1 cup almond slivers or blanched almonds \n \t
- 1 teaspoon baking soda \n \t
- 3 teaspoons mixed spice or pumpkin spice mix \n \t
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon \n \t
- A pinch of salt, a pinch of black pepper and a pinch of cardamom \n
\n
\nInstructions
\n\n
\n- \n \t
- \nSoak the dried fruit in the brandy/whiskey/tea for as long as possible. Overnight is ideal.\n \t
- \nPreheat your oven to 165 C/330 F fan forced\n \t
- \nPrepare an 8“round baking pan with oil/butter all over and line the base with baking paper.\n \t
- \nBeat the eggs in medium bowl with an electric mixer until light and frothy.\n \t
- \nAdd vanilla extract, oil or butter, nut milk and orange zest and mix until well blended.\n \t
- \nMix the dry ingredients together until combined and ensure the baking soda is well dispersed. Using a spatula, stir the dry ingredients into the egg mixture and mix until ingredients are well combined. Finally gently fold the dried fruit mixture through the batter with a spatula until well dispersed but without over mixing.\n \t
- \nPour the cake batter into the prepared cake tin and smooth off the top. Decorate with additional nuts if desired.\n \t
- \nBake on the middle rack for 35-40 minutes or until cake is cooked on the inside. Check with a skewer to see if it pulls out dry. Take care not to overcook. If cake is browning too quickly, drop the temperature back a little.\n \t
- \nAllow cake to cool in the pan for about 10-15 minutes. Tip the cake out onto a cooling rack and wrap in cling wrap if you want a lovely moist centre.\n
\n
\nRecipe Notes
\n
Variations - Slivered almonds can be switched for blanched almonds, walnuts, pecans or macadamia nuts.\nSwitch the blueberries and cranberries for 1 cup of mixed fruit of choice, such as 1 cup of cranberries, mixed fruit, peel etc.\n\nLow Carb Glaze - For a special occasion, you may want to glaze the cake with low carb glaze.\n\nTo make glaze, bring to boil 1 tablespoon of stevia/monk fruit blend with ¼ cup of water. You can also add 1-2 tablespoons of whiskey or brandy with the water but restrict the total liquid amount to ¼ cup. Once you have brought the mix to the boil, turn the temperature down and simmer for about 2-3 minutes. The liquid will be slightly syrupy.\n\nRemove from heat and allow the mixture to cool slightly before brushing it onto your slightly warm or cool cake. If the mixture crystallizes, simply reheat, add a dash more water or alcohol and simmer until it liquidizes before using.\n\nTo Serve - cut the cake and serve as it comes with a cup of tea or coffee. Try warming the cake up slightly and serve it with low carb custard. The cake can also be drizzled with brandy or whiskey prior to heating up.\n\nHandy Hint - if the cake has dried out slightly, serve it warm. Freshen it up by spraying lightly with water and microwave for a few seconds to warm it up. Alternatively moisten the cake, cover with foil and warm up in the oven for a few minutes.\n\nCake Pan Tips - when baking cakes, the cake will cook a lot slower and not dome as much if you use a light colored pan. While not vital, it is a great tip to consider when baking.\n\nNote that baking powder is not used in this recipe because the cake is meant to be a heavy cake, like a fruit cake. If you want a slightly lighter cake, you can add 1-2 teaspoons of baking powder to the recipe.\n\nStoring Tips - in cling wrap or baking paper, wrapped in foil in an airtight container for 3-4 days for ultimate freshness. The recipe freezes really well.\n\nDried Cranberries - Nearly all dried cranberries are sweetened with apple juice, so buying them sugar free is difficult. If you don't want to make your own, use the apple sweetened ones if you don’t mind the additional carbs. I have used the sugar reduced cranberries in recipes before, but they are still higher in sugar than I would probably prefer. By the time a cake or pudding is divided into about 20 serves, the carbs are still quite low though. See my recipe below for Low Carb Christmas Pudding where I used the reduced sugar cranberries and you will see that you can still end up with a low carb serve at the end (if you don’t eat the whole cake!) \n\nDried Blueberries - Dried blueberries are also normally sweetened. I like to buy these particular blueberries from iherb. They are dehydrated but don’t have any added sugars. Once soaked, they swell and are wonderful in cakes and puddings. Note that this brand's dried raspberries and strawberries are divine as well.\n\n
\nNutritional Information
\n
Serving: 1serve | Calories: 180kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 14g | Fiber: 3g
\n
