Why Plum Cake for Christmas?And why is it called a plum cake, if it’s not made with plums? | Indian plum cake recipe

Jingle Bells Jingle bells Christmas on the way !! Yes Christmas season is on its way. Christmas reminds us of so much of things. Christmas trees, bells, lights, Santa claus, mince pie and of course plum cakes. These soft and fluffy plum cakes are the speciality of this christmas season.

Festival and food always come in combo to tell  tales of historical celebrations.Lets learn about how plum cakes have come from history.

It was a popular tradition in medieval England to observe a period of fasting and strict withdrawal from every kind of indulgence in the weeks leading to Christmas.That self discipline and occasional fasting was supposed to prepare the body for the overindulgence and feast for Christmas.

To prepare our tummy for a great feast and to subside the effects of fasting in tummy ,on the eve of Christmas, a rich porridge was cooked and eaten to “line the stomach”.The porridge, said to have been made with oats, dried fruits, spices, honey, and sometimes even meat, can be called the grandfather of the Christmas — or plum cake.

As time went by and as more ingredients made their way into the porridge, it has taken its current form. It is believed that sometime in the 16th century, oats was replaced with flour, and eggs and butter were also added to the mixture. (The meat had already been taken out of it and was prepared in other forms).In the richer households that owned an oven, the mixture was baked and not boiled. There comes our plum cake !!

Since the cake is abundantly filled with raisins , its called a plumb cake(raisins and currants are called ‘plumb’ in england).Then got derived into a “Plum cake”.Gradually the plum cake travelled from england to every corner of world.Each country has its own recipe of preparation.The usual and the best one is soaking nuts in rum.some are fed with sherry or brandy for weeks after being baked, and some have no alcohol at all. Then there is a version of cake made up of cream cheese and whipped cream.But for sure not any of the versions has the actual plums !! Here you go with the popular plum cake recipe.

Ingredients for Plum cake

• 1 cup raisins
• 1 cup figs chopped
• 1 cup dried apricots chopped
• 1/2cup dried ginger chopped
• Half cup candied orange peel chopped
• Three-Fourth cup Brandy
• 225 gms butter melted
• 380 gms flour
• 5 tsps baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• Half tsp ground ginger
• Half tsp ground cloves
• Half tsp salt
• 300 gms breakfast sugar
• 150 gms packed brown sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 2 tbsp molasses
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup toasted walnuts
• Half cup apricot jam
• Half cup warm water

How to make a plum cake

1. Stir together dried fruit, candied ginger, candied orange peel and brandy. Keep overnight.
2. Preheat oven to 180 degrees C. Butter two 9/5 inch loaf tins. Line them with butter paper.
3. In a bowl mix dry ingredients. Flour, baking powder, spices and salt.
4. Beat butter in a mixer and both the sugars until smooth. Mix eggs one at a time followed by molasses and vanilla. Gradually add the flour mixture. Mix till smooth. Add the fruit mixture and walnuts.
5. Divide the batter between the two tins. Bake for 1 hour and 35 minutes or till the tester comes out clean. Remove from oven and brush the top with more liquor. Remove and place on a wired rack.
6. Heat the jam and water till smooth and glaze the top of the warmed cake

Important tips by the Chef

1. You can boil the dried fruit and candied fruit, strain and use immediately if running low on time.
2. Brandy can be substituted with any other dark rum or orange flavoured liqueur.
3. Use the best quality dried fruits available.
4. Unglazed cakes can be shrink-wrapped and stored for up to one month in the fridge.

Come let’s celebrate christmas in best way and spread love to world ! Merry christmas 2020 !

Nativ pantry

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