[ad] “Cut and Come Again” Farmhouse Fruit Cake – A modern take on my maternal grandmother’s boiled fruit cake recipe. My recipe uses Doves Farm White Rye flour, and ancient grain which is lower in gluten than normal wheat flour.
with
Doves Farm Ancient Grains
I used to hate Sundays, it was the dreaded day before school and later on the last day before work; however now that I work for myself as a freelance writer, I love Sundays. It’s usually the day when we both indulge in a “lie-in”, complete with the Sunday papers and a cuppa – then it’s a leisurely brunch and maybe a walk before lunch. It’s also my favourite day to bake, a proper old-fashioned “baking day” with a chance to fill those cake, biscuit and bread tins as well as make pies, tarts and some meals for the week ahead. Today’s recipe for “Cut and Come Again” Farmhouse Fruit Cake is a recipe that is very close to my heart. It’s a modern take on my maternal grandmother’s boiled fruit cake recipe, a recipe that my mum used to make regularly for dad, as it was his favourite cake. The fact that I have made it now is quite poignant, as it was a year ago that mum suffered a major stroke which led to her passing away some four months later. However, as I still come to terms with the sudden loss of both parents, it’s also a lovely recipe to make and bake. A much-loved family recipe that reinforces the fact that happy memories will never fade, but on the contrary, will only strengthen with time.
My recipe for “Cut and Come Again” Farmhouse Fruit Cake is the last in a mini series of Ancient Grains recipes that I have been working on in collaboration with Doves Farm. It’s an easy “boiled fruit cake” recipe that used Doves Farm Organic White Rye Flour in place of the usual wheat flour. I love rye flour in bread, but I’ve never used it in cake recipes before. However, having tasted this delicious fruit cake, I will definitely be using it again. Unique to Doves Farm, White Rye, (secale cereale) is a popular grain grown throughout Central and Eastern Europe, and this hardy crop can thrive in poor soils and cold conditions. Low in gluten, rye flour is also a great wheat free option for speciality diets and like most ancient grains it adds a nutty taste and flavour of whatever you bake with them. I have used Doves Farm Organic Stoneground Wholemeal Rye Flour before, in bread, but it was lovely to test out the white rye flour too, which gives a less dense texture in baking.
My other two recipes using Doves Farm ancient grains are here:
BACON, CHEESE & ONION SPELT MUFFINS
KAMUT® KHORASAN & TOASTED NUT SOURDOUGH
Today’s recipe for “Cut and Come Again” Farmhouse Fruit Cake is shared below in a printable recipe card, and I do hope you enjoy this cake recipe if you make it. It’s a fabulous fruit cake recipe that will keep for a couple of weeks in an airtight tin, if it lasts that long that is! If you want to make it the same way as my grandmother used to do, then make it in a large, lined roasting tin and cut the cake into squares…..that’s how mum used to make it sometimes too, and I always looked forward to a slab of this homemade fruit cake in my school lunch box. That’s all for today, as my followers on social media will know, I have been travelling a lot over the last few weeks, so do look out for some new travel stories, Karen
*Disclaimer: Paid collaborative post with Doves Farm. I have full control over all creative content*
“Cut and Come Again” Farmhouse Fruit Cake
Print recipe
| Serves | 16 slices |
| Prep time | 30 minutes |
| Cook time | 2 hours |
| Total time | 2 hours, 30 minutes |
| Allergy | Egg, Wheat |
| Dietary | Vegetarian |
| Meal type | Dessert, Side Dish, Snack |
| Misc | Child Friendly, Serve Cold |
| Occasion | Birthday Party, Christmas, Easter, Formal Party, Thanksgiving, Valentines day |
| Region | British |
| By author | Karen Burns-Booth |
Ingredients
Initial Boiled Cake Mixture
- 225g butter
- 300ml water
- 2 teaspoons mixed spice
- 450g mixed fruit and peel
- 115g brown sugar
Dry Cake Mixture
- 2 free-range eggs, beaten
- 50g chopped mixed nuts (I used walnuts and almonds)
- 115g chopped glace cherries
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 275g Doves Farm Organic White Rye Flour
Topping
- 50g flaked almonds
- 1 tablespoon Demerara sugar
Note
"Cut and Come Again" Farmhouse Fruit Cake - A modern take on my maternal grandmother's boiled fruit cake recipe. My recipe uses Doves Farm White Rye flour, which is lower in gluten than normal wheat flour.
Directions
| Step 1 | Place all of the ingredients from Initial Boiled Cake Mixture list into a saucepan and heat them together over a low heat, stirring all the time until the butter has melted and the sugar has dissolved. Set to one side to cool for at least 15 to 20 minutes. |
| Step 2 | Pre-heat the oven to 160C/325F/Gas mark 3 and grease and line a large cake tin. I used a 25cm/12" cake tin, you can also use a large roasting tin too. |
| Step 3 | Add the cherries to the flour and baking powder and mix them to coat them in flour. Add the flour and cherry mixture to the cooled fruit mixture, along with the chopped nuts and beaten eggs. Mix well with a wooden spoon. |
| Step 4 | Pour or spoon the mixture into the prepared cake tin, then scatter the flaked almonds over the top with the Demerara sugar and bake for 2hrs in pre-heated oven, checking after an hour and half. |
| Step 5 | Once the cake is cooked, remove it from the oven, allow to cool for a few minutes in the tin before removing it from the tin and placing the cake onto a wire cooling rack - allow to go cold before slicing and serving. |
| Step 6 | Store the cake in an airtight tin for up to 2 weeks. |
My recipe for Doves Farm 40th Birthday is below:
Hazelnut & Chocolate Chip Cappuccino Cake
Susan says
It would be so helpful and appreciated if you would give your room measurements in those used in the United States. It’s quite a chore of figuring out the equivalence in our measuring system. Cake looks wonderful want to make it.
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thank you so much Susan – I’m so glad you like the recipe!
If I can be polite, I live in the UK and not the USA, so I don’t use cups! Also, I follow many US sites and blogs and they don’t post in Metric, and I don’t expect them to either! To add an unfamiliar measurement system to my recipes here would mean extra time when I write the recipes out. I do have a very handy conversions chart on Lavender & Lovage however, I will share the link here:
Kitchen Tips and Conversions Charts
I hope that helps! Karen
Sue says
Thank you so much! And thank you for NOT giving me your “room measurements.!”
Karen Burns-Booth says
My pleasure Sue 🙂
Jean says
Karen, I agree with you. Your blog is gloriously English. If people need other units they can surely work it out for themselves, the way we have to if we wish to make something from an American website. The attitude of some people!
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thank you Jean – I do work very hard to make my site inclusive for all, but as you say, I am English! 🙂
Jean says
Your kitchen tips page is excellent, by the way!
Karen Burns-Booth says
THANKS so much Jean! 🙂
Jayne says
May I add that using cup measures for baking is not advised. It can never be accurate and will lead to unpredictable results. A set of simple digital scales can be purchased from Amazon in the US for less than 10 dollars – I imagine you could also pick up something similar in your local supermarket. If all cookery writers refused to show ingredients using the American system they would be doing all bakers a favour!
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thanks for your support on this subject Jayne! I try my best when posting recipes to appeal to all nationalities, but I cannot add cups as I simply don’t know how to convert 115g of butter say, into cups! Plus, all of my recipes here are free to access, so I don’t have the time to convert all the recipes either. Karen
Sarah | Boo Roo and Tigger Too says
My granny always had a farmhouse cake in the larder for whenever visitors popped in
Karen Burns-Booth says
It is JUST the best cake to have tucked away in the pantry or larder for visitors isn’t it Sarah? 🙂
Jean says
This looks gorgeous. I have only recently rediscovered fruit cake and am enjoying them again – they seem to have been out of fashion for a while. I also love Doves Farm flours. They have a date and walnut cake recipe using GF flour which disappeared like lightening at our charity cake stall. I shall be looking out for this flour to give your recipe a try.
Karen Burns-Booth says
Thanks so much Jean – Doves Farm offer so many amazing flours and the ancient grains really have been very exciting to bake with too. I agree about fruit cakes, I remember that my mum and grandmother always used to have a fruit cake in the cake tin when I was growing up. Karen
Jane says
Would like to make this cake but would rather use normal white flour( do I use SR or P) Living in the highlands I am unable to find white rye flour, could order some from Dove Farm I know! but as I wouldn’t use it much the £4.95 postage makes it a very expensive bag of flour as well as the cake.
Karen Burns-Booth says
You can make this cake with plain or SR flour of course, the texture will be different, but it is possible to use either of those flours.
dechaume says
Ne changez rien votre blog est sublime . Je suis en France est les mesures pour moi me vont bien . Non continuez comme cela c’est super !!!
Karen Burns-Booth says
Merci beaucoup! Karen
Mick.d says
Hi Karen,going to bake this it looks a bit like Yorkshire tea loaf which me and my wife have regular.do you butter your cut come again cake.
Karen Burns-Booth says
Hi Mick, yes, it’s great when served buttered, as you say, like Yorkshire tea cake. Karen
Linda Holden says
This is by far the best ‘Cut and Come Again ‘cake I have ever made and I’ve tried dozens. I made one last week and I’m making a seond one tonight. Thank you for an excellent recipe.
Karen Burns-Booth says
Wow! 🙂 thank you SO much for your kind comments, I am pleased that you love this cake recipe of mine! Karen