Christmas
Gluten-free alternative Christmas cake recipe
Looking for a gluten-free Christmas cake recipe? This festive bake is a mainstay of celebrations at this time of year. Our gluten-free Christmas cake is a delicious alternative for everyone to enjoy.
Traditional Christmas cakes often need to be made well in advance of Christmas day, but you need not worry here. This gluten-free Christmas cake recipe is ideal for serving up as a last-minute treat. What’s more, we’ve added a delicious gut-friendly twist to the icing of this recipe using crème fraîche. This classic ingredient is made from cream that’s been soured using bacteria. It’s naturally thick and adds a generous dollop of beneficial gut bacteria.
Find more festive treats in A Happy, Healthy Christmas
Step inside Liz’s 75-page guide and enjoy 40 tempting festive recipes, with everything you need for your ultimate Christmas countdown. From festive foods and feasts, gut-friendly party fare and Boxing Day treats, enjoy Christmas with a wellbeing twist.
Liz explains how to make holiday decorations and homemade gifts for the ultimate personal touch. Plus discover the best drinks to serve family and friends – from mulled wine to mocktails, kombucha cocktails and more. It’s your go-to guide for surviving the season stress-free!
Download Liz’s guide A Happy, Healthy Christmas
Discover more delicious festive treats
Ingredients
For the cake
- 200g very soft butter
- 250g golden caster sugar
- 50g ground almonds
- 250g gluten-free self-raising flour
- 6 eggs
- 6 limes, zest & juice
- 4 lemons, zest & juice
- 4 tbsp candied citrus peel
- 5cm cube fresh ginger, grated
- 2 tbsp fresh mint leaves
- 1 tsp chilli flakes (depending on taste)
For the drizzle & icing
- 200g golden caster sugar
- 2 limes, zest & juice
- 2 lemons, zest & juice
- 200ml crème fraîche
Method
- First, make the cake. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 and grease two 20cm cake tins. Grate the zest of 6 limes and 4 lemons and then squeeze the juice into a bowl. Then place all the cake ingredients (eggs, soft butter, sugar, almonds, flour, candied peel, mint, chilli flakes, grated ginger and citrus juice and zest) into a very large bowl and keep mixing until you have a loose batter.
- Divide the batter evenly between the two cake tins and bake for approx. 30-35 minutes, until the cake is golden and the middle feels firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and let the sponges cool slightly in their tins before pricking all over with a form of cocktail stick.
- Next, zest two further limes and keep to one side for the icing. Then make the drizzle by zesting two lemons into a small saucepan, together with the sugar and the juice of the two lemons and limes. Gently heat until the sugar is dissolved, taking care not to let it burn. Pour the citrus drizzle over both cakes, while cakes and drizzle are still warm.
- Once the drizzled cakes are completely cool, make the icing by mixing the crème fraîche with half the lime zest you’ve put to one side. Use half of the icing to sandwich the two cakes together and the other half to spread over the top of the cake. Finally, decorate the cake by sprinkling over chilli flakes, the remainder of the lime zest and springs of mint.
