Phil Vickery's gluten-free Christmas cake recipe

Name: Phil Vickery's Christmas cake recipe
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 2 h
Total time: 2 h 20 min

Chef Phil Vickery explains how to make the perfect gluten-free fruit Christmas cake, with a texture that's he says is even better than a traditional one.

A fruity Christmas cake displayed on a wire cake stand

By Saga Magazine | Published - 27 Nov 2025

Michelin-starred TV chef, Phil Vickery, has created over 70 simple, failsafe recipes for everything from cupcakes and traybakes, to muffins, breads and pastry.

It's best to soak the fruit in the whisky and lemon juice overnight for this recipe; it makes a real difference to the texture of the cake.

Prep time

20 mins

Cooking time

2 hours

Ingredients

For the cake

75g currants
75g sultanas
350g raisins
50g mixed peel
150ml whisky
Grated zest and juice of 1 small lemon
Vegetable oil, for oiling
150g Gluten-Free Flour Mix B (see below)
1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder (check Coeliac UK's Food and Drink Directory)
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1 teaspoon ground allspice
150g unsalted butter, softened
150g soft dark brown sugar
3 medium eggs, at room temperature
50g ground almonds
2 tablespoons semi-skimmed milk
50g whole almonds
100g natural-coloured glacé cherries, halved and washed
1 tablespoon black treacle
1 tablespoon clear honey

For the top

2 tablespoons smooth apricot jam, warmed
100g mixed glacé fruits; eg red or green cherries, ginger, melon or pineapple
50g nuts eg almonds, walnuts, pecan halves

For the gluten-free four mix

300g fine polenta or chestnut flour
500g brown rice flour
200g cornflour

Method

Place the dried fruit and mixed peel in a pan, add the whisky and lemon juice and zest, and bring up to the boil. Take the pan off the heat, cover and leave to soak overnight.
Preheat the oven to 150°C/gas mark 2. Oil and line the base and sides of a 6-8cm deep round or square 18cm cake tin with a double layer of baking parchment, including a tall collar sticking up.
Sift the flour, baking powder, xanthan gum and spices together. Cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy and light. Gradually add the eggs and flour, alternately, and then add the ground almonds. Stir in the milk and mix in the dried fruit mixture, almonds and cherries. Finally stir in the treacle and honey and give the whole cake mix a thoroughly good stir.
Spoon the mixture into the tin, level, and bake for about 1½–2 hours or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the tin.
To decorate, brush the surface of the cake with half the warmed jam. Arrange, or pile, a selection of glacé fruits and nuts over the top and brush over a second layer of jam to glaze. Now all you need is a big bow to put round the sides!

Gluten-free Flour Mix B

Makes: 1kg

Preparation: 5 minutes

Mix all the flours together very thoroughly or put into a food processor and pulse until mixed. Store in an airtight container.

Notes

Fancy a traditional topping?

I like the glace fruit and nut topping as it’s so quick and easy! But if you prefer you can decorate it in the traditional way with a layer of marzipan topped with white icing of your choice.

To store: The undecorated cake will keep for up to 1 month, tightly wrapped in foil and in an airtight container.

To freeze: When cold, remove it from the tin, wrap the undecorated cake in greaseproof paper and two thick layers of foil and freeze in an airtight container. Defrost for 3–4 hours and when defrosted decorate as above.

Please note:

If you have any concerns about any ingredients, please check the Coeliac UK website, which carries an extensive list of foods and drinks.

Recipe from Seriously Good! Gluten-Free Baking by Phil Vickery in association with Coeliac UK, (Kyle Cathie) RRP £19.99

Check price

(Hero image credit: Tara Fisher)

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