Been considering whether to do the fruit soak and decided to just do it since this can be soaked for a long long time even if I decide not to bake any fruit cake this year. Here’s the recipe, adapted from my previous bake http://sucre-haven.blogspot.sg/2014/12/christmas-fruit-soak.html
Usually, I soak it for a week or so, but this year, I started earlier and the longer you soak, the better the flavour.
(Makes 1590g fruit soak)
Ingredients
- 250g golden raisins
- 250g black raisins
- 250g cranberries
- 250g currants
- 250g mixed fruits
- 150g apricots
- 100g mixed peel
- 90g candied ginger
- 370 ml alcohol (I used a cinnamon flavoured alcohol (complimentary bottle from a friend, ‘with gold flakes’, he said ._.) mixed with Drambuie because there wasn’t enough Drambuie left over from last year.)
- 120 ml orange juice (I used store bought ones which are slightly sweetened.)
- 4 sticks of cinnamon
Method
- Measure out all the ingredients into a big mixing bowl.
- Cut the apricots into small cubes, about the size of the candied ginger.
- Mix all the ingredients together using a wooden spoon.
- Pour the alcohol and orange juice into the fruits and stir with wooden spoon till all coated with the liquid.
- Pour the fruit soak into prepared glass bottle and put in the cinnamon sticks.
- Store in fridge and take the fruits out for a stir or shake everyday to ensure that the fruits are evenly coated with the liquid.
- This can be used after a week or you can continue to feed it till ready to use. Some people keep this for a year.
I have been using this for the last two years and I quite like this recipe, only, it is better to bake the cakes earlier so the cakes have time to mature and the flavour fully developed. Welcoming Christmas soon!