Traditional Irish Spiced Fruitcake
You’ll love this Traditional Irish Spiced Fruitcake recipe that uses flavorful dried fruits like raisins, currants, and cherries and is spiced with a mix of ginger and allspice. This traditional cake is great to serve as a party dessert or an afternoon treat with a cup of tea.
Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email below and get it sent straight to your inbox.
During the holiday season, we love our traditional holiday fruitcakes but I know many people don’t care for the candied fruit. If you’re one of them, you might really enjoy this cake instead. No candied fruit in sight! Just lovely dried cherries, raisins, and currants.
And the spices are heavenly. The lovely combination of allspice and ginger gives just the right flavor along with the dried fruit.
I did a little research on this cake since the method is quite different from any I’ve seen before. What I found is that this traditional recipe is also called an “Irish Boiled Fruitcake.” You’ll see why that makes perfect sense when you read the recipe which, by the way, is ridiculously easy. I also found that this is typically served as an afternoon snack or tea.
❤ Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s made from scratch meaning that it likely has healthier ingredients than you might find in a store-bought fruitcake.
- It’s great for those who like the flavor of fruitcake but don’t care for the texture of candied fruit.
- Makes a wonderful hostess gift for a get-together or Christmas party.
- Even though this fruitcake is part of Christmas traditions, you can serve it any time of the year as a dessert or snack.
- Unlike traditional fruitcake recipes, this Irish fruitcake is alcohol-free.
🥘 Ingredients You’ll Need
This post contains affiliate links. Lana’s Cooking is reader-supported and earns a tiny commission at no extra cost to you when you shop from our links.
- Dried Raisins and Currants – Dark raisins, golden raisins, and currants all have different flavors and add texture to the fruitcake. If you can’t source currants in your area, simply adjust the amounts of the raisins to make up the total volume needed.
- Dried Cherries – Cherries give a slight tart and tangy flavor to the cake that pairs well with the rest of the ingredients.
- Walnuts – Chopped walnuts add a nutty flavor and crunchy texture.
- Turbinado Sugar – You’ll need sugar with a larger grain like turbinado or raw sugar to sweeten the fruitcake.
- Butter – Gives the cake a rich buttery flavor and a dense texture.
- Ground Ginger and Allspice – These classic warm spices add savoriness to the cake.
- Baking Soda – Gives the cake a bit of a rise.
- Milk – Milk helps thin out the cake batter and gives it a creamy texture.
- Self-Rising Flour – You’ll need self-rising flour as the main ingredient to help the cake rise slightly.
- Eggs – Binds the cake together while baking and helps it set when cooling.
You’ll find detailed measurements for all ingredients in the printable version of the recipe at the bottom of this post.
🥄 How to Make Irish Spiced Fruitcake
- Prepare a deep 8″ cake pan or 8″ square pan by greasing it with butter. Cut a piece of wax paper to fit the bottom of the pan. Place the wax paper in the bottom of the pan and then grease the wax paper as well. Set that aside.
- Next, add all the ingredients except the flour and eggs into a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a boil while stirring constantly.
- Lower the temperature and let it simmer for 5 more minutes giving it a stir every once in a while.
- Remove the boiled mixture from the heat and let it sit for about 30 minutes or until it has cooled. It will thicken a little while it cools.
- While the boiled mixture cools, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- When the mixture has cooled, stir in the flour and eggs. Stir thoroughly to make sure all the flour is incorporated into the mixture.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan.
- Cook for 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325 and continue cooking until a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Cooking Time
👉 A note about the cooking time: Similar traditional recipes for this cake say to cook at 350 for 30 minutes, reduce the heat to 325 and continue cooking for 1 hour or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. I’ve made this cake many times and my cake is always done after the first 30 minutes. I can’t imagine how burned it would be if I continued to cook for another hour! However, I realize that baking times vary from oven to oven and also based on the material of the pan you’re using. My recommendation is to check the cake after 30 minutes and if it’s not done, reduce the heat to 325 and continue to cook checking every 10 to 15 minutes.
- When the cake is done, remove it from the oven and let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Turn it out onto a cooling rack and allow it to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar if desired.
❗ Recipe Tips
- When the cake is done, remove it from the oven and let it cool in the pan for at about 10 minutes. This will help the cake set and begin to separate from the cake pan.
- When mixing the dried fruit, use any mixture of raisins and/or currants to equal 1 ½ cups.
- The fruit mixture must be completely cooled before adding it to the rest of the ingredients.
- Milk and eggs should be at room temperature to make sure the fruitcake bakes evenly.
- Since dried fruit is prone to sticking, it’s important that the cake pan and parchment be greased very well.
🔀 Variations
- For more spiced flavor, add in your desired amount of cinnamon and nutmeg.
- Use any of your favorite nuts such as chopped pecans, macadamia nuts, or cashews in place of the walnuts.
- Give the cake a little heat by adding a pinch of cayenne to the dry ingredients.
- Dust with powdered sugar or frost with a light layer of icing for a beautiful presentation.
- For a citrus twist, add 1 to 2 tablespoons of lemon or orange zest to the cake batter before baking.
🍚 Storing and Freezing
- Storing: This fruitcake will last about 2-3 weeks in the refrigerator if stored in an airtight container though it will begin to lose moisture over time so it’s best to consume it as soon as possible.
- Freezing: Fruitcake may be frozen for 4-6 months if each piece is wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and then placed in a freezer-safe bag or airtight container. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving.
❓ Questions About Irish Spiced Fruitcake
It depends on the type of fruitcake. Since this one contains no alcohol to preserve the ingredients, it’s best to store it in the fridge.
To prevent fruitcake from developing mold, it should be stored correctly. Wrap the cake tightly in plastic wrap or foil before storing it in an airtight container with a tight lid.
Fruitcake contains dried fruits, nuts, and spices, and is baked in the oven. Christmas pudding is a steamed pudding made with beef suet.
🧾 More Recipes You’ll Like
- Traditional Irish Barmbrack
- Champ
- No-Bake Southern Icebox Fruitcake
- Irish Fish Pie
- Boxty – Irish Potato Pancakes
- Leek and Potato Soup
- Mr. Guinness’ Cake
- Irish Stew
- Brown Irish Soda Bread
More Questions? I’m happy to help!
If you have more questions about the recipe, or if you’ve made it and would like to leave a comment, scroll down to leave your thoughts, questions, and/or rating!
Thanks so much for stopping by!
📖 Recipe
Traditional Irish Spiced Fruitcake
Ingredients
- ½ cup dark raisins
- ½ cup golden raisins
- ½ cup currants Note: use any combination of raisins and/or currants to equal 1 ½ cups
- ½ cup dried cherries
- ⅓ cup chopped walnuts
- ¾ cup turbinado or other raw sugar
- ½ cup butter
- 1 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup milk
- 1 ¾ cups self-rising flour
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
Instructions
- Prepare a deep 8" cake pan or 8"square pan by greasing it with butter. Cut a piece of wax paper to fit thebottom of the pan. Place the wax paper in the bottom of the pan and then greasethe wax paper as well. Set that aside.
- Put all ingredients except flour and eggs into a large saucepan.
- Bring to a boil over medium high heat while stirring continuously. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes stirring frequently.
- Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool for about 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Stir the flour and eggs into the cooled fruit, spice, and nut mixture. Make sure the ingredients are well combined and no dry flour is visible in the mixture.
- Pour into the prepared pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Test the cake by inserting a skewer or toothpick in the center. If the tester does not come out clean, lower the oven temperature to 325 and continue baking and testing every 10 minutes until done. The additional baking time will vary greatly depending on your oven and the cake pan used. Watch carefully as the cake can burn easily.
- Cool cake in pan for 10 minutes. Invert onto a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar if desired.
Notes
- The fruit mixture must be completely cooled before adding it to the rest of the ingredients.
- Storing: This fruitcake will last about 2-3 weeks in the refrigerator if stored in an airtight container though it will begin to lose moisture over time so it’s best to consume it as soon as possible.
- Freezing: Fruitcake may be frozen for 4-6 months if each piece is wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and then placed in a freezer-safe bag or airtight container. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before serving.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.
— This post was originally published on January 22, 2013. It has been updated with additional information.
This cake turned out well, but was more dense than expected. I’ve soaked it in apricot brandy to age. Overall it’s a good cake but I’m not sure it’s worth the extra time needed to boil all of the ingredients. I’m glad I tried it!
Can regular granulated sugar and brown sugar be used in place of turbinado or raw sugar?
I have never used those before and hate to buy them just for one recipe. Pretty pricey.
You could try light brown sugar as a substitute, Sylvia. However, I have not tried it myself so I can’t guarantee your results, but I’d think it would work.
Lana,
I pulled down my Irish Pub Cook Book to look for a shrimp spread and happened upon the fruit cake recipe. It looks so inviting and I happen to have fruit ready for a Traditional English Fruit Cake that I did not make. (I usually make them by the 1/2 dozen). I glanced at the recipe and just re-read it and saw the unusual step of boiling all together(except the flour and eggs). I thought to see what other recipes for the same type of cake asked for and behold…here I am on your site! I can’t wait to make this cake and use up the fruit that was meant for another!
Sounds lovely for a winter’s afternoon tea-time.
Thank you, Lucy. It’s a delicious recipe and goes well with a cup of Earl Grey or Irish Breakfast tea.
I am definitely one of the many people who do not like traditional fruitcake. This cakes sounds very tasty.
We like them both, Wendy. I always make a traditional light fruit cake for Christmas, but this one is great for any time of year. It’s especially good with a nice cup of coffee on a cool afternoon.
I love the no-fuss prep method for this cake and the fact that it doesn’t need any frosting – looks easy and delicious!
I was amazed at how easy this cake was to make. And the result is just delicious! Hope you give it a try.
I’ve never made a fruitcake, but this makes me want to try!
Give it a try, Sues. I think you would like it.
I will let you in on a secret ….. don’t tell anyone else….. if I have to make a cake, you can be pretty safe in betting that it will NOT have icing that has to be cooked like a candy process. Not that I cannot do it, but I choose not to do it. Yep, most of my icing will be of the cream cheese/powdered sugar variety.
Therefore, this looks wonderful. No icing required.
Miss P
Yes, me and layer cakes just don’t really get along. I can do them if I *have* to, but I never enjoy making one. Cream cheese and powdered sugar…that’s the way to go!
I absolutely love cakes like this and cannot wait to try this one.. reminds me of one my Grandma made when I was a little girl – we’d have a small slice with our “tea” in the afternoon!
Pub food, if done well, is amazingly good!! I know what you mean about the scenery – when we were there it was a good thing my husband was driving otherwise we’d of ended up in a ditch due to my “rubbernecking”!!
I love these kinds of cakes, too, Nancy. I’ve never been good at layer cakes with all that frosting and filling. I do them once in a while, but much prefer a simple one-layer cake of this type.
I know what you mean about the scenery! When we were there, I couldn’t watch the road for looking around at the absolute beauty everywhere. My heart still longs to take another trip to Ireland.
Saw your recipe on food gawker. This cake is almost identical to my irish great grandma’s except she used a dark beer (usually porter) instead of milk. You should try it that way sometime…and I agree…a delicious holiday treat and no weird candied fruit in sight! :)
Tara – I’m definitely going to have to make this again with the dark beer. Thank you so much for sharing that hint!