Christmas cake without dried fruit seemed almost impossible, but we have created a really delicious alternative.
This cake is full of Christmas spices with a delicious toffee nut topping.
Serve warm or cold – it’s a great Christmas cake for the festive season!
- Serves: 8
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Oven Temperature: 180°C (fan forced 175°C)
- Cooking time: 25-30 minutes
- Cake tin: 20cm (8 inch) ring tin
Ingredients
Cake topping
30g melted butter
2 tablespoons The Sugar Breakup Organic Golden Rice Malt Syrup
3/4 cup mixed nuts slightly chopped (we used almonds, walnuts, cashews and hazelnuts)
Cake sponge
100g softened butter
1/2 cup The Sugar Breakup Dextrose
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons The Sugar Breakup Organic Golden Rice Malt Syrup
1 tablespoon brandy
1 tablespoon water
1 cup self raising flour
1/2 teaspoon mixed spices
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Putting it together
The Christmas Cake topping
- Place oven onto 180C (175C fan forced) and grease cake tin.
- Melt the butter and rice malt syrup together for the cake topping then place into the bottom of the cake tin making sure it’s evenly distributed.
- Place the mixed nuts into the cake tin into the butter/RMS mix; set aside.
The Christmas Cake sponge
- In a small bowl with electric beaters, beat the butter and dextrose until light and fluffy.
- Add the vanilla and beat well.
- Add the eggs a little at a time beating each addition well.
- Transfer butter mix to a larger mixing bowl.
- Sift the flour, mixed spices and nutmeg together; set aside.
- Mix together brandy, water and rice malt syrup.
- Then using a large metal spoon fold a third of the flour mix and a third of the brandy mix into the butter mix, repeat this until all folded together.
- Spoon the mixture evenly over the nuts and smooth the surface. Bake for 25-30mins or until a skewer comes out cleanly when inserted into the centre.
- Leave in tin for 10mins and then cool on a wire rack. Best eaten fresh, will keep for 2-3 days in air tight container in the fridge.
Serving Suggestions
- Serve with thickened cream.
- You can serve this cake warm, like a pudding and add custard.
- You can use Grand Marnier instead of brandy, to achieve citrus elements in the cake.
TheSugarBreakup.com 
In NZ chantal organics does a rice malt syrup so try your nearest organic suppliers. I know that Taste Nature in Dunedin stocks it as have just bought somw there
Can’t wait to try this. Do you have one for Christmas Pudding which I am going to miss terribly?
Dear Kylie,
Your wish will come true – we will be posting a sugar free pudding before Xmas (custard and all! )
OMGosh. I am so excited. This is the one thing I really am missing since being 99.9% sugar free since February this year. I can’t wait.
The only problem is if you follow a LCHF diet you would need to substitute the flour
In his quit sugar books, David talks about getting off sugar before using dextrose. I’m wondering, if I serve this at family christmas party, where there are diabetics who still eat sugar, will they experience side affects?
Good question, Sue. I’d like to know the answer.
Dear Sue and Naomi, thanks for the question. I’m a type 1 diabetic so feel confident to answer this one. With any treats made with the traditional white stuff or dextrose and RMS, diabetics still need to be careful of portion control and to make sure it fits into their dietary guidelines. As a diabetic this would be a treat food, great for a Christmas Day celebration as it has significantly less sugar than a traditional Christmas cake which is full of dried fruit.
Do you know where I can buy “Golden Rice Malt Syrup” in NZ? I would love to make this Christmas Cake.
Unfortunately we are not yet available in NZ (hopefully soon!), you could try substituting with a plain rice syrup, they tend to be available at health food stores.
I’m not a Christmas Cake person but I think I would make this up as a Chrissy gift :) Yum :)
Hi Dale, it would make a lovely gift as its very pretty to look at. You could leave the nuts whole to create a beautiful pattern! Fiona