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Home » Gluten-Free Baking » Gluten-Free Cakes » The Best Gluten-Free Fruit Cake

The Best Gluten-Free Fruit Cake

By Georgina Hartley  •  Published February 27, 2020  •  Updated October 9, 2020

This post contains affiliate links. Please read my disclosures.

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Pin Images of Gluten Free Fruit Cake. Two images of the cake with title text overlay.

Fit for any occasion The Best Gluten-Free Fruit Cake is packed with juicy sultanas, raisins, glacé cherries and mixed peel. A light sponge with a slight citrus edge that is humble enough for a simple tea time or can be easily decorated to suit a more special gathering.

A slice of Gluten-Free Fruit Cake on a plate in front of the rest of the cake

Having a farmhouse style fruit cake on hand for tea breaks, serving to unexpected house guests or for family snacking feels so reassuring. It’s one of those homely cakes that can fit any occasion. A soft light sponge packed with juicy fruit and humbly decorated.

In fact you don’t really need to decorate it at all. Bare naked or with a smattering of sieved icing sugar will not detract from the this cake’s inviting nature.

Why is this Gluten-Free Fruit Cake so brilliant?

  • This is a light every day fruit cake, not one of those rich spiced affairs that crops up at Christmas or wedding celebrations.
  • Packed with delicious dried fruit soaked in citrus to make it extra plump and juicy.
  • This is not a large cake so you won’t have it hanging round for ages. It’s enough for a few simple sittings.
  • Fruit Cake freezes so well that is seems almost churlish not to bake two at a time so you can stick one in the freezer for cake emergencies.

Gluten-Free Fruit Cake on a white plate with a knife placed next to it

What flour do you use to make Gluten-Free Fruit Cake?

The choice of alternative flours here really makes the cake ultra special.

  • Sweet Rice Flour – This flour gives the cake a soft bouncy quality. The starchiness of sweet rice flour gives structure so the cake doesn’t crumble to pieces when you cut into it. 
  • Oat Flour – A light flour which has a beautiful flavour. It’s used here as well to give the cake levity and keep it from being too dense.
  • Ground Almonds – okay this isn’t really a flour but the ground almonds help give the cake a beautiful moist texture and plenty of protein to hold it together. Plus a lovely nutty taste. You can substitute for almond flour. If you want more info on nut flours then visit this comprehensive guide.

How do you make Gluten-Free Fruit Cake?

  1. Soak glacé cherries, sultanas, raisins and mixed peel in the zest and juice of an orange and lemon for at least an hour.dried fruit in a glass bowl
  2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.creamed butter and sugar in a mixing bowl
  3. Add eggs one at a time and beat until well combined.cake batter in a mixing bowl
  4. Whisk sweet rice flour, oat flour, ground almonds, baking powder and salt together.a mix of flours in a glass bowl
  5. Add the flours to the batter, mix well then add the soaked fruit.cake batter in a mixing bowl
  6. Pour into a 6 inch x 4 inch round cake tin and bake for 2¼ hours.fruit cake batter in a cake tin
  7. Remove from oven and leave to cool on a wire rack.Gluten-Free Fruit Cake on a cooling rack
  8. Brush with warmed apricot jam and decorate with glacé fruit and nuts.

Gluten-Free Fruit Cake on a white plate

Baker’s Tips

  • Leaving the fruit soaking in the citrus juice for an hour allows the fruit to fully absorb the liquid. You can even leave overnight to soak.
  • Make sure your butter comes to room temperature before creaming with the sugar.
  • This cake uses medium eggs.
  • Storing – Keep the cake in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
  • Freezing - You can freeze Gluten-Free Fruit Cake before you add the final brush of apricot jam. Wrap up tightly in cling film and then tin foil to avoid freezer burn. It can keep frozen for up to 2 months. To defrost remove from the freezer the night before you wish to serve it and leave wrapped up on the side to defrost. The next morning unwrap it and brush with the apricot jam as directed.
  • I recommend using anodised aluminium cake tins (this recipe uses a 6 inch x 4 inch round cake tin) for baking cakes as they are inexpensive and bake a lovely even cake.

How to make this Gluten-Free Fruit Cake really special

If you really want to push the boat out then I really recommend using Homemade Glacé Cherries and Homemade Mixed Peel. They are a labour of love but the difference in flavour using homemade versions is out of this world.

Variations for Gluten-Free Fruit Cake

  • You can use any dried fruit – think chopped apricots, sour cherries, cranberries, diced figs.
  • Add roughly chopped almonds to the sponge as well. It adds a lovely nubby texture.
  • Add diced marzipan to the cake batter for a gorgeous almondy flavour.
  • Add diced stem ginger and a teaspoon of ground ginger to the cake for added warmth.

Gluten-Free Fruit Cake on a white plate with a large slice taken out

Love fruit cakes and need more recipes?

Gluten-Free Cherry Cake
Vinegar Cake
Gluten-Free Simnel Cake
Whisky Marmalade Bundt

If you make The Best Gluten-Free Fruit Cake then please leave a comment below and/or give the recipe a rating. If you then go on to use this recipe as a launch pad for your own baking creation then I’d also love it if you’d share it and tag me on Instagram. It is so lovely for me to see your versions and variations of my recipes.

A slice of Gluten-Free Fruit Cake on a plate in front of the rest of the cake

The Best Gluten-Free Fruit Cake

Georgina Hartley
Fit for any occasion The Best Gluten-Free Fruit Cake is packed with juicy sultanas, raisins, glacé cherries and mixed peel. A light sponge with a slight citrus edge that is humble enough for a simple tea time or can be easily decorated to suit a more gathering.
5 from 6 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 2 hrs 15 mins
Resting Time 1 hr
Course Cake
Cuisine British
Servings 8 people
Calories 487 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 100 g glacé cherries - roughly chopped
  • 100 g sultanas
  • 100 g raisins
  • 50 g mixed peel
  • 1 orange
  • 1 lemon
  • 150 g unsalted butter - room temperature
  • 150 g caster sugar
  • 2 eggs - medium
  • 80 g sweet rice flour
  • 60 g oat flour
  • 30 g ground almonds
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 100 g apricot jam
  • extra glacé fruit and almonds for decorating

Instructions
 

  • Pre-heat the oven to 170°C/150°C fan/ gas mark 3. Line and grease a 6 inch diameter x 4 inch round cake tin.
  • Soak the glacé cherries, sultanas, raisins and mixed peel in the zest and juice of the orange and lemon for at least an hour.
  • Cream the butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer or in a stand mixer until light and fluffy.
  • Add the eggs one at a time and mix in until fully combined.
  • Whisk the flours, ground almonds, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl then beat into the batter.
  • Add the soaked dried fruit and mix in well.
  • Pour into the cake tin and place in the oven.
  • Bake for 30 minutes then turn the oven down to 150°C/130°C fan/gas mark 2 and bake for a further 1¾ hours.
  • Remove from the oven, carefully insert the cake out of the tin and leave to cool on a wire rack.
  • Pour the apricot jam into a small saucepan and heat until the jam is runny.
  • Brush the cake all over with the apricot jam then decorate with more glacé fruit and whole almonds if you wish.

Video

Notes

  • Adapted from Eric Lanlard’s Light Fruit Cake from his book Home Bake.
  • For some really special additions try using Homemade Glacé Cherries and Homemade Mixed Peel.
  • Make sure the butter comes to room temperature before creaming with the sugar.
  • This recipe uses medium sized eggs.
  • You can substitute the ground almonds for almond flour.
  • If you are intolerant to oat flour you can substitute with millet or sorghum flour. There will be a slight difference in flavour.
  • Store the cake in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
  • This cake freezes really well for up to 2 months. I recommend freezing before you brush with the apricot jam.

Nutrition

Calories: 487kcalCarbohydrates: 78gProtein: 5gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 81mgSodium: 109mgPotassium: 360mgFiber: 3gSugar: 45gVitamin A: 590IUVitamin C: 18mgCalcium: 67mgIron: 1mg
Have you tried this recipe?Head to the comment section and let me know what you think!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Annie says

    March 11, 2021 at 9:56 am

    5 stars
    This is a delicious fruit cake. I used an 8 inch by 3.5 inch cake tin and it required the same cooking time. It’s moist with a little crumble and is lovely with a cup of tea! Thank you very much Georgina!

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      March 11, 2021 at 10:05 am

      Hi Annie - that's great to hear! Thank you for your lovely feedback!

      Reply
  2. Sidney says

    March 09, 2021 at 5:11 pm

    5 stars
    This recipe came out great. I used a 7" pan and changed the temperature and time a bit. Oddly, I think it was even better after a day in the fridge. Thank you 🙂

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      March 11, 2021 at 10:08 am

      Hi Sidney, I'm so happy you like the cake - thank you!

      Reply
  3. Susan Coleman says

    January 31, 2021 at 5:08 am

    Just wanted to thank you again for this recipe. I made them as gifts for my gluten free friends!
    Today I changed it up a bit..using dried cranberries, lemon, lime and orange peel, glace cherries, chopped brazil nuts. I soaked the fruit in cranberry juice with 4 drops Young Living Orange+ Essential Oil ( approved for cooking). It is delicious and ecen my non fruit cake loving kids are liking it.
    I am excited to try more of your recipes!

    Reply
  4. Susan Coleman says

    December 07, 2020 at 6:12 pm

    This cake has a wonderful flavor!
    Howevet, it was VERY crumbly ( mostly crumbs with only the bottom half being solid). We are tryijg to troubleshoot.
    How much difference between Sweet Rice flour and Rice flour? How much liquid should there be with the fruit? We are wondering if we needed more moisture.
    Thank you in advance for helping us figure it out.

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      December 07, 2020 at 7:24 pm

      Hi Sue, I'm sorry to hear that the cake was too crumbly for you. This one definitely has a crumble to it -which is intentional but you should be able to cut it into decent slices. Did you use sweet rice flour or regular rice flour? If it was the latter then that is exactly the problem as sweet rice flour is a starchy flour which helps bind the cake together and regular rice flour does not do the same job. Click the link for my guide to Sweet Rice Flour which gives loads more info. If that wasn't the case then let's think again!

      Reply
      • Susan Coleman says

        December 29, 2020 at 8:51 pm

        Thank you! I was able to order Sweet Rice flour and we made another cake. It was PERFECT! My husband and I loved it!

      • Georgina Hartley says

        December 30, 2020 at 9:05 am

        Hi Susan, that's great to hear. I'm so happy that it worked out this time!!

  5. Sureita says

    October 25, 2020 at 1:21 pm

    5 stars
    Thank you for posting this Georgina. I baked this today for the first time and it is delicious. Moist but firm, flavourful and looks pretty good too. I adjusted the cooking time as baking in an Aga is less controllable but This is definitely going into my favourite recipes.

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      October 25, 2020 at 10:04 pm

      So happy you like it - thank you for your lovely feedback!

      Reply
  6. Lindsey says

    August 24, 2020 at 5:53 pm

    Hi, I haven’t tried this recipe yet but do you have any trouble with the fruit dropping to the bottom of the cake?

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      August 24, 2020 at 8:18 pm

      Hi Lindsey, there is a little bit of sinkage but the batter is quite thick so it's not too much of a problem.

      Reply
  7. Ronak Mehta says

    August 20, 2020 at 2:01 am

    Wow. It looks delicious. I love pineapple cakes. So, I will try to make it. Your recipe will help me. Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  8. Celia says

    May 23, 2020 at 1:58 pm

    5 stars
    I have no rice flour. Can I use self raising or plain flour.

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      May 24, 2020 at 8:32 pm

      I haven't tried it with self raising or plain flour, so I'm sorry but I cannot say.

      Reply
  9. Lucy S says

    May 21, 2020 at 2:11 pm

    5 stars
    Delicious! Only had 50g caster sugar so had to top up with muscovado, but it was great.

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      May 24, 2020 at 8:34 pm

      That's lovely to hear - thank you!

      Reply
  10. Lucy says

    May 20, 2020 at 6:51 pm

    This looks delicious! I don't have a 6 inch tin though, only 9 inch or a loaf tin. Would either of those work? Thanks.

    Reply
    • Lucy says

      May 20, 2020 at 6:53 pm

      I just saw the comment below and will try a loaf tin. Do you think adding psyllium husks would help with crumbling cakes?

      Reply
      • Georgina Hartley says

        May 20, 2020 at 7:49 pm

        Hi Lucy, you could try it (the slight crumble was intentional - just like my favourite farmhouse fruitcake from our local bakery - which is not gf unfortunately)

  11. Sarah says

    May 17, 2020 at 6:07 pm

    5 stars
    I’ve been meaning to try this recipes for ages and managed yesterday. Wow! It is indeed the BEST GF fruit cake. In fact just be fruit cake full stop. I used a 2lb loaf tin but will buy at 6inxb round tin as if was very crumbly. Perhaps that’s why. The flavour is divine. Thank you so much for sharing this.

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      May 19, 2020 at 7:55 pm

      Hi Sarah, the fruit cake should crumble a little but not too much that you shouldn't achieve a good slice. I think that is part of a farmhouse fruitcake's charm. I am happy you were a fan of the cake though - I love it too!

      Reply
  12. Pauline says

    February 29, 2020 at 12:05 pm

    Wow this looks amazing. A terrific everyday fruit cake Tandy but still looks sensational. Definitely on my list to try when I finish travelling and get my mojo back. Love it. Thanks, Pauline

    Reply
    • Georgina Hartley says

      March 01, 2020 at 12:05 pm

      Thank you! Let me know if you give it a go!

      Reply

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About Me

Hello, so lovely of you to drop by. I am Georgina. I bake a lot, eat a lot and love writing about my gluten-free kitchen adventures here. I run a gluten-free cake business but am mostly kept busy with my 2 cats, 1 dog, 1 husband, 2 gorgeous sons and twin baby girls.

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