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For a long time, plum cakes which we get to buy (from nearby bakeries) were those light brown cakes covered in butter paper, with lot of tutty-fruity, a few raisins, and some nuts on the top. It had a bitter flavor which many don’t prefer. Further, most of these cakes were hard and had a dry texture. For many years, I wondered where is the plum in plum cakes? It took a lot for me to realize that the real plum cakes were very different and in no way near to the ones which we were sold as “Plum cakes” for all these years, especially in India and more so in Chennai. Once you get to know the real ingredients and the recipe, it’s not difficult to understand why we have a toned-down version of plum cakes - it's simply because of the cost of making one.
Plum cakes supposedly originated in England and were one of the most important parts of the Christmas celebrations. Early days it was more of a wholesome dish with oats and meat as well, not baked but boiled. However, with the evolution in cooking techniques and availability of sophisticated devices like ovens, etc, it started to take different forms in different parts of the world. There is no clear reasoning as to why it is still called a "plum" cake. Plum actually referred to any dried fruit in the olden days. However, some still feel that plum cakes should have prunes (dried plums). The ingredients which go into the making of plum cakes are costly and so is the time and expertise required. Hence many shops have opted for cheaper variants by using canned juices and largely raisins and tutty-fruity (in India especially), which is the cheapest dry fruit available in the market today. We have different varieties of plum cakes these days and in different names and price points – Rich plum cake, Rich fruit cake, Christmas fruit cakes, Rum cakes or Dark plum cakes, etc…. so what is the difference between these and which one is authentic? To be honest, all of them may be true in their own sense. There is not much difference between these varieties when it comes to the color and taste too. These are just the names used to differentiate slight changes in flavors and how the cakes are made and largely for marketing purposes (and pricing).
But does this match with an authentic Christmas plum cake? No. Authentic plum cake recipes use some form of alcohol (rum or brandy largely, even wine) for soaking the dry fruits. What this does is that it increases the lifetime of the cake (in some cases for several months) and it also infuses real flavor to the fruits and the cakes. The cakes are made weeks before Christmas and it's feeded with alcohol for few days till Christmas. Using dark rum or flavored alcohol will enhance this effect and will also add a strong dark color to the cakes. Branded alcohol is better. Whereas fruit cakes are normally made by soaking the dry fruits in fruit juices (orange or grape) rather than alcohol. These can be made in a shorter time and are also cheaper considering the absence of alcohol. There may be differences in the kind of dry fruits used - black raisins and cherries are very common in any rich plum cakes. Further other dry fruits like figs, dates, apricots, prunes, and berries can also be used. Some variants use a mix of nuts as well especially cashew, almonds, or pecan nuts to enhance the flavor and texture. The brown color of the cake is obtained from the rum, soaked fruits, and also caramel used in the batter. In other countries, plum cakes also come with sugar frosting. However, I have not seen these variants much here in India. I prefer to dust powdered sugar on the plum cake and top it with some diced cherries.
My affection for plum cakes started when I got a chance to try a dark and rich plum cake once in Kerala. I couldn’t find a similar one anywhere in Chennai or for that matter even in Mumbai. Most of the bakeries in Chennai have a very hard variant of the plum cake which largely has tutty-fruity and some raisins. However, recently some of the bakery chains and the supermarkets have introduced the rich plum cake and they are priced very high. In recent years, the rich plum cakes have taken a back seat in Kerala as well. The Kerala bakeries have started to sell pudding cakes instead which are cheaper and equally tasty with different flavors like dates, carrot, banana, etc).
The hunt for a real authentic plum cake continued and I just couldn’t find a genuine one that was soft, rich, and full of flavors, busting in your mouth the moment you take a bite. This is when I thought of making one myself. There are thousands of recipes for plum cakes available online and hence to know which is authentic and at the same time tasty was a big task in itself. But after several attempts and trials, we figured out a recipe that gave an output as good as the one we had in Kerala years before. This is the same recipe that we use at Sia Cakes in two variants.
The Rich fruit cakes are made by soaking the dry fruits (Golden and black raisins, cherry, tutty-fruity, dates) in juice rather than in alcohol. These are ready-made and will be available all time throughout the year.
The exotic plum cakes are made using some exotic dry fruits (including mixed berries like cranberries, blueberries etc, prunes, fig, orange peel, apricots) along with raisins, cherries and dates soaked in branded alcohol (Rum). The cakes are made to mature through alcohol feeding process to elevate its flavour, texture and color. These are limited in quantity and available only during Christmas time. We use high-quality ingredients for our cakes and both plum and fruit cakes don’t have any other artificial colors or fruit flavors. We use a specially made spice mix which blends well with these flavours and enhances its richness and taste. While the texture and softness of the cakes are largely similar, both have a very distinct flavor and taste, which you can’t resist after one bite. These are available in 400 gms and 800 gms packs and will be a perfect gift for your families and friends too. So instead of more stories, why don’t you order one and experience these wonderful tasty cakes and make this Christmas special !!
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