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–+ servings

Simple Cranberry Apricot Traybake

Overhead shot of pink chopping board with cranberry apricot fruit tryabake cut into squares.
For a quicker & simpler fruit cake, without raisins, currants or sultanas, try my simple cranberry apricot traybake!
Caro @ Caroline's Easy Baking Lessons
Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Cooling/Inactive Time** 1 hour 20 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 15 minutes
Serving Size 16 Slices

Equipment

  • Scales or measuring cups
  • Measuring Spoons
  • Wooden spoon
  • Saucepan
  • Hand/stand mixer (optional)
  • Baking/parchment paper
  • 9"/23cm Square cake tin (or rectangular tin, see notes below*)
  • Medium to large sized mixing bowl
  • Sieve
  • Cooling rack

Ingredients

For The Cake

  • 200 grams Butter (unsalted & cubed,7 oz, ¾ cup + 2 tbsp)
  • 200 grams Light Brown Sugar (7 oz, 1 cups)
  • 340 grams Dried Cranberries (12⅓ OZ, 2¾ Cups*)
  • 150 grams Dried Apricots (5⅓ oz, 1¼ cup*)
  • 240 ml Orange Juice (8 fl oz, 1 cup, or other pure fruit juice*)
  • 3 Eggs (Medium to large, or US Large to Extra Large)
  • 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
  • ¼ tsp Ginger (rounded ¼ tsp)
  • 15 drops Foodie Flavours Pumpkin Spice (Ground Pumpkin Spice or UK Mixed Spice alternative - 1 tsp*)
  • 397 grams Plain Flour (14 oz, 3 rounded cups All Purpose Flour)
  • 1¾ tbsp Baking Powder (or 5 level tsp)

* denotes - see notes below

Baking ingredient measurement conversion table.

Instructions

Cook/Hydrate The Fruit

  • Add 200 grams Butter, 200 grams Light Brown Sugar, 340 grams Dried Cranberries, 150 grams Dried Apricots, 240 ml Orange Juice, 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon, ¼ tsp Ginger & 15 drops Foodie Flavours Pumpkin Spice to a cooking pot. (Check out Food Flavours, or see alternative in notes).
  • Cook on a low to medium heat, until melted/dissolved. Reduce to low & simmer for 20 minutes, till fruits are plump & liquid is syrupy.
  • Remove & strain off the liquid & reserve for later. Roughly chop the apricots, (or process all the fruit very lightly), before placing in the fridge for 20 minutes.

Prepare The Batter

  • Pre-heat oven 170°c/150°c Fan Oven/325°f/Gas Mark 3. Reserve 3 tbsp of the syrup into a small bowl for a glaze.
  • Add the cooled down fruit to a large mixing bowl, along with half of the syrup, before adding in 3 Eggs. Next, sieve over 397 grams Plain Flour & 1¾ tbsp Baking Powder. Mix briefly by hand before moving onto using an electric mixer. Gradually add in more syrup & mix just until combined, with no more dry patches. **Note, the batter will be extra thick & chunky, so you might not need all the syrup.

Prepare Cake Tin

  • Well grease & paper line a 9"/23cm square cake tin. Cut the paper to fit the bottom & up the sides of the tin, by cutting a thick cross-shape. (See my lining cake tins lesson for more details & a video). Hold the paper in place with Frylight cooking/baking spray, cake release spray, or homemade lining paste/Cake Goop. Trim excess or hold down the edges with metal bulldog clips.

Bake The Cake

  • Spoon the cake batter into the prepared tin, smoothing & levelling as best as possible. Tap a few times on the counter/worktop before placing in the centre of the oven to bake for 50 - 60 minutes.
  • **After 25-30 minutes, cover the top of the cake with foil & continue baking for another 25-30 minutes. Will be fully baked when a cocktail stick comes out clean of crumbs & internal temperature will be 90.5 – 96°c (195-205°f).
  • Remove from the oven, place on a cooling rack & brush on some of the reserved syrup as a shiny glaze. Then leave to cool for 30 minutes.
  • Lift out the cake using the paper & leave on the rack to cool completely. You can brush on more syrup glaze now too if you wish, or later. **Can be left overnight, once fully cooled & wrapped in cling film/plastic wrap, & left out at room temperature.

Serving & Storing

  • Slice the traybake cake into 16 squares & serve with a favourite hot drink or tipple! Great on its own or with some whipped cream or ice-cream.
    Wide shot of a fruit traybake cake sliced into squares on a pink chopping board.
  • Store the fruit cake in a metal cake or cookie tin, for at least 1 week. Want it to last longer? Well wrap in cling film/plastic wrap, then in a tin & will be good for at least 2 weeks.

Notes

Butter - always use unsalted, unless otherwise stated.
Sugar - Light brown sugar used, but 50/50 combination of white & dark brown sugar could be used, or coconut sugar.
Cranberries & Apricots - you can alter the weight of these, but make sure the total combined weight is 490g (17.25 oz).
Extra close shot of 2 squares of cranberry apricot served on a plate.
Apricots - you can chop lightly before cooking.  However, they plump up better when whole at the cooking stage.
Orange Juice - puree fruit juice, or other flavour if you like.
Eggs - US large to extra large size, at room temperature.
Cut cranberry apricot cake squares on chopping board with some stacked.
Spices -  Foodie Flavour Pumpkin Spice concentrated liquid extract used.  But 1 tsp US ground Pumpkin Spice or UK Mixed Spice work too.
Flour - Plain (All Purpose) flour used with baking powder.  But UK Self-raising also works, just remember to omit the baking powder.
Recipe Yield -16 slices/cake squares
Overhead shot of white marble tabletop, with fruit traybake on pink chopping board cut into squares.
Alternative Sizes Tin - see my article on How To Reduce A Recipe, or How To Increase A Recipe, with calculations.
More sweet & savoury Christmas Bakes
More Cake recipes or Penguin fondant tutorial
Baking ingredient measurement conversion table.
Overhead shot of pink tabletop with napkin and Christmas baubbles, with platter serving Madeira loaf cake in the centre.
Quicker Christmas Fruit Cake recipe (above)
Nutritional Information - I am not a qualified nutritionist and all values are estimates.  Values based on using all ingredients as listed above, where 1 serving is one cake square, from a yield of 16 slices.  Cut smaller or larger cakes and these values will change.  Note, that if not all of the syrup is used in the batter, the nutritional values will be lower.  All values calculated via MyFitnessPal.com.
Nutrition Facts
Simple Cranberry Apricot Traybake
Serving Size
 
1 slice
Amount per Serving
Calories
340
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
12
g
18
%
Saturated Fat
 
7
g
44
%
Polyunsaturated Fat
 
1
g
Monounsaturated Fat
 
3
g
Cholesterol
 
62
mg
21
%
Sodium
 
174
mg
8
%
Potassium
 
154
mg
4
%
Carbohydrates
 
55
g
18
%
Fiber
 
3
g
13
%
Sugar
 
35
g
39
%
Protein
 
4
g
8
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.