Mini Christmas Muffins! Nice to serve at gatherings and ultimate for gifting – lengthy shelf life, packages up superbly, simple to make and economical. Made with my basic Christmas cake batter, the wealthy fruit cake is moist and velvety.
Mini Christmas Muffins
Listed here are the Mini Christmas Muffins I promised in final weeks’ Vacation Reward Information!! That is simply my basic Christmas Cake transformed into mini kind. They give the impression of being so nice on a platter to serve at gatherings, and are additionally ultimate for gifting as a result of they’ve a protracted shelf life. The cake is superbly moist, wealthy with dried fruit, perfumed with Christmas spices. Dense, however gentle pudding-like, not like a brick as many retailer purchased ones are.
I additionally like that they’re simple to decorate up for serving and gifting, as a result of this Christmas Cake is designed to be eaten plain. So that you don’t must fuss to work round frosting or add a sauce for serving. Simply mud with icing sugar, then for an additional Christmassy contact, tie a ribbon round every one and add a sprite of rosemary!
Additionally – the choice so as to add a Christmas pudding drippy glaze!
What it is advisable make Mini Christmas Cakes
A LOT of dried fruit and little or no cake batter!! 🙂
1. SOAKED DRIED FRUIT (booze non-obligatory)
Right here’s what you want for the Soaked Dried Fruit. The fruit is soaked in both apple juice OR a mixture of apple juice and brandy (for individuals who like boozy Christmas Cake).
Dried fruit combine speedy choice – Whereas I like to cut my very own dried fruit (cake is softer, you get higher flavour and I can use the ratios I like), be at liberty to make use of a retailer purchased mixture of pre chopped dried fruit for comfort.
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Use any dried fruit you need – So long as it weighs 855g / 30 oz in whole. The choice above is the combo I like!
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Combined peel is a retailer purchased mixture of dried, crystallised (ie sugared) lemon and orange peel. Often it comes pre chopped – I like to cut it a bit finer. I like much less citrus peel than some recipes as a result of I’m too scarred by all these occasions I bit into an enormous piece of orange peel. Simply to not my style! Don’t use FRESH orange and lemon peel, it is going to be too sturdy and too bitter. I have no idea how a lot contemporary peel to substitute this for.
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Juice and/or booze – for a conventional boozy Christmas Cake, simply swap 1/3 of the apple juice with brandy. May also sub apple juice with orange juice if you’d like a stronger citrus flavour.
2. CHRISTMAS CAKE BATTER
And right here’s what you want for the cake batter half. The cake has little or no baking powder as a result of it’s fairly a dense cake with a pudding-like texture. But it surely’s nonetheless bought a definite “cake” texture – not like some Christmas Muffins which can be so dense they’re like consuming fudge!
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Brown sugar – Darkish brown sugar provides the cake a richer color and that’s what I take advantage of for my basic single giant Christmas cake. For particular person ones, I favor a barely lighter colored crumb so the fruit bits stand out extra, so I take advantage of common brown sugar.
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Molasses / golden syrup – provides to the richness of flavour and color of cake. Both is ok – I interchange yr on yr.
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Walnuts – sub with any nuts of selection, or depart it out utterly.
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Oil AND butter – oil is what provides this cake an excellent moistness. Butter is for flavour!
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Eggs – That is what makes the cake maintain collectively fairly than being crumbly.
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Flour – Simply common plain / all-purpose flour. Self elevating flour can be utilized to substitute the flour and baking powder however the cake might dome somewhat greater than pictured.
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Spices – All spice, cinnamon and nutmeg. Traditional Christmas cake flavours!
The right way to make Mini Christmas Muffins
The one distinction between this and my basic Christmas Cake is that I bake it in a sq. pan so I can reduce into sq. particular person muffins.
Pan measurement – I take advantage of a 20 cm / 8″ sq. pan which makes a 4.5cm / 1.8″ tall cake so when reduce into 9 squares, they’re a pleasant tall top and spectacular gift-giving measurement. Be happy to make use of a bigger pan – for instance, a 23 x 33cm / 9 x 13″ pan will make a 2.3cm / 1″ tall cake which you’ll be able to reduce into extra items. You may as well use a muffin tin lined with silver foil patties.
1. Baking the Christmas cake
The important thing step that makes this a lot quicker to make than different fruit muffins is the fruit soaking step. Most recipes name for dried fruit to be soaked in a single day. I take a speedy method: simply microwave the dried fruit with juice and/or brandy, then stand for 1 hour to take in the liquid. A lot quicker – and simply as efficient!
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Soak fruit – Microwave the dried fruit with the juice/model for 1 1/2 minutes or till scorching. Stir to coat then put aside for 1 hour to let the fruit absorb the liquid and plump up.
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Batter – Beat the butter and sugar for 1 minute till mild and fluffy. Due to the amount of sugar vs butter, it received’t look creamy however you possibly can inform it’s gentle from the feel. Then beat within the oil and molasses, then the salt, spices and baking powder. Then beat within the eggs one after the other, beating till simply included.
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Combine within the flour utilizing a picket spoon.
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Soaked fruit – Then combine within the dried fruit, together with any residual liquid left within the backside of the bowl.
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Pan – Pour the batter right into a lined 20cm / 8″ pan. It would fill it proper to the highest and that’s advantageous, the cake barely rises. As famous above, it’s a dense cake however it’s not brick-like! It’s nonetheless distinctly cakey.
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Bake 2 1/2 hours – Cowl the cake with a sheet of baking paper (which can peel off with out ripping the cake floor off), then foil. Then bake for two hours, take away foil and paper, then bake for an additional half-hour uncovered to color the floor.
Cool – Take away the cake from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes within the pan earlier than transferred to a rack to totally cool.
2. Chopping mini muffins
I like to chop into 9 squares as a result of I believe the proportions look good and the cake is a gift-worthy measurement. To be particular, they’re 6.5cm / 2 1/2″ squares which can be 4.5cm / 1.8″ tall. As famous above, be at liberty to make use of totally different measurement pans. For instance, a 23 x 33cm / 9 x 13″ pan will make a cake that’s 2.3cm / 1″ tall and it is possible for you to to chop many extra items.
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Chopping – Trim the perimeters (to make the edges neat). Then reduce the cake into items as desired. I do 9 squares.
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Trim floor – The floor of the cake is ever so barely domed. So to make the Christmas Cake into excellent uniform items, I trim the floor then flip them the wrong way up and adorn the bottom.
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Flip and mud or ice – Flip the cake the wrong way up so the bottom of the cake is the facet you adorn. Then both mud with icing sugar (simple choice I take advantage of when gift-wrapping), or adorn drippy-style with white frosting (for a basic Christmas Pudding look) or high with fondant (see basic Christmas Cake recipe for instructions).
Reward wrapping
As I discussed earlier, Mini Christmas Muffins have of their favour as a home made gifting thought. They’re:
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Straightforward to make
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Economical – particularly in case you use a combined fruit choice as an alternative of getting particular person dried fruits
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Straightforward to brighten – Only a dusting of icing sugar makes them immediately Christmassy! Although tying ribbon across the cake actually is a straightforward approach to make them much more gift-worthy. 🙂
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Straightforward to reward wrap – no want to search out particular measurement jars of reward baggage. Simply wrap in cellophane and tie with ribbon.
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Lengthy shelf life – This one is vital to me! Just a few years in the past I did cookies however they simply don’t have an awesome shelf life. It’s uncommon for any cookie to actually stay in top-notch contemporary kind past 2 days. Wheres the Christmas Cake? I’ve stored mine within the fridge for a month and it was nonetheless like freshly made. How good is that!
Like to know the way you current these Mini Christmas Muffins in case you attempt them, or the way you customise the cake to your style. Share within the feedback under – readers love getting inspiration!
Additionally, spoiler alert for my buddies – you’re all getting Mini Christmas Muffins this yr. 😂 – Nagi x
Watch how you can make it
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Mini Christmas Muffins – ultimate for gifting!
Prep: 30 minutes
Cook dinner: 2 hours 30 minutes
Fruit soaking: 1 hour
Complete: 4 hours 45 minutes
Dessert
Australia, British, Western
Servings9 – 16 items
Faucet or hover to scale
Elements
Quick soaked fruit (Be aware 1):
Christmas Pudding Drippy Glaze
Directions
Quick Soaked Fruit:
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Warmth – Place dried fruit and juice/brandy in a big microwavable container. Microwave 1 1/2 minutes on excessive or till scorching.
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Soak – Stir to coat all fruit in liquid. Cowl then put aside for 1 hour (to plump up/soak and funky).
Cake:
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Preheat oven to 160°C / 320°F (140°C fan). Grease and line a 20cm / 8″ sq. cake pan with baking paper / parchment paper, or bigger pan to get extra muffins out of it. (Be aware 5 on pan measurement).
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Beating – Utilizing an electrical beater, beat butter and sugar till clean and creamy (about 1 minute on velocity 5). Add oil and molasses, beat till mixed. Add salt, spices and baking powder – beat till included. Add eggs, one after the other, beating till simply included.
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Stir in the flour, then the dried fruit (together with all the additional liquid in bowl) and walnuts (if utilizing).
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Pour into the cake pan, it can fill it proper to the highest (it will not spill over, the cake barely rises). Cowl the floor with paper (Be aware 6) then cowl with foil.
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Bake 2 1/2 hours – Bake for two hours, take away the foil and paper, then bake for an additional half-hour. A skewer inserted into center ought to come out clear with no batter on it.
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Take away from oven and funky for 20 minutes earlier than transferring to cooling rack. Cool utterly earlier than chopping.
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Chopping – Trim off the edges (to make them neat). Then reduce into 9 squares (or extra, if you’d like). Trim the floor (to make them stage because the cake barely domes). Then flip the wrong way up and adorn the bottom of the cake.
Adorning, gifting and serving
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Easy – Mud with icing sugar. That is all this cake wants, it is so full flavoured and moist! Wrap with cellophane and ribbon to reward.
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Ribbon – Wrap and tie a ribbon round every cake. Good approach to current for serving. (Non-obligatory to incorporate for reward wrapping too, however then there is a double ribbon state of affairs taking place – ie ribbon and cake, ribbon on cellophane!)
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Drippy white glaze – Combine the icing sugar, butter, vanilla and begin with 2 tbsp milk. Combine rather well (it can take time to come back collectively, be affected person). Then modify thickness utilizing 1/2 tsp milk at a time. BE CAREFUL – it goes from too thick to too skinny very simply! Objective: Thick glaze that may ooze “pudding type”, as pictured, fairly than dripping in lengthy streaks. Spoon onto cake, coaxing it down the edges. Permit to set earlier than wrapping.
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Fondant – See instructions in my basic spherical Christmas Cake.
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Serving – serve with custard for a conventional expertise! Both home made custard or retailer purchased pouring custard.
Recipe Notes:
Combined peel is a retailer purchased mixture of diced, dried, crystallised (ie candy) orange and lemon peel. Generally it’s already chopped, typically not. Chop it to measurement per recipe. It isn’t contemporary peel. Recent peel can be a lot stronger and extra bitter – undecided how a lot to make use of.
Pre chopped combined dried fruit – retailer purchased mixture of pre chopped dried fruit is ok to make use of. Chopping your individual will yield a extra moist cake (pre chopped dried fruit will not be as moist) BUT having mentioned that, this cake is so extremely moist, it has the give to make use of pre chopped!
2. Juice / brandy – this cake tastes simply nearly as good made with or with out alcohol, it comes down to non-public style. I often make it with out as a result of Christmas Cake stretches far and I need everybody to have the ability to eat it.
BRANDY – If you wish to use brandy, use 1/3 cup brandy PLUS 2/3 cup + 2 tbsp juice.
Juice – I like utilizing apple juice for its impartial flavour. Pineapple and different not so sturdy flavoured juices can be advantageous right here. If you happen to like citrus flavour, use orange juice – you possibly can style it a bit greater than different juices.
3. Darkish brown sugar – makes the cake a wealthy darkish brown color. Can sub with regular brown sugar – will make cake lighter (additionally seems to be good as fruit stands out!)
4. Molasses / golden syrup – provides to the richness of flavour and color of cake. Both is ok – I interchange yr on yr.
5. Cake pan measurement – A sq. 20cm/8″ pan makes a 4.5cm / 1.8″ tall cake which is a pleasant top for 9 squares. Be happy to make this cake in a bigger cake pan. a 23 x 33cm/9 x 13″ pan will make a cake 2.3cm / 0.9″ thick, it takes round 1 hour 45 minutes to bake (coated for 1 hour quarter-hour, then uncovered for half-hour). Don’t fret about precise baking occasions as a result of the cake could be very moist so it’s forgiving.
You may as well use a muffin tin – silver liners look beautiful. They take round 25 minutes to bake (no must cowl, simply bake uncovered).
6. Serving – cake is moist and so full flavoured it’s fantastic eaten plain. However for an additional particular contact, serve with custard.
7. Storage – I’ve stored it for a month in an hermetic container within the fridge and it was good because it was freshly made (at room temperature). Having researched on-line, seems to be like 2 to three months is the overall consensus (for fridge) and a yr within the freezer (for this kind of cake, with no alcohol.
Diet Data:
Energy: 388cal (19%)Carbohydrates: 64g (21%)Protein: 4g (8%)Fats: 15g (23%)Saturated Fats: 9g (56%)Ldl cholesterol: 38mg (13%)Sodium: 127mg (6%)Potassium: 413mg (12%)Fiber: 3g (13%)Sugar: 37g (41%)Vitamin A: 469IU (9%)Vitamin C: 1mg (1%)Calcium: 50mg (5%)Iron: 2mg (11%)
Lifetime of Dozer
Pleading for assist.
