Have you gone grocery shopping when you were hungry? Have you noticed that when you do that you really fill the shopping cart with everything that you see, whether you need it or not? That's what happened (sometime back in December) and I had a tub of Old English style fruit and citrus peel mix sitting in one corner of the refrigerator until last week.
Finally, I decided to use it and the first recipe which came to my mind was the Vegan Christmas fruitcake.
Earlier I had baked that cake using applesauce. Since this month's egg substitute is yogurt and buttermilk, I decided to go with buttermilk. Moreover one of the visitors (Ramya) had mentioned that she tried the recipe with yogurt and it came out well and so did mine.
It's really amazing that a simple recipe like this and with NO added fat can yield such fabulous results. Everybody loved the bars. This time I have categorized it under bars because it can either be a cake or a bar.
However you call it, the taste is phenomenal. I also replaced the all-purpose flour with whole wheat pastry flour that did not affect the taste as well. The only con I would say is the high fructose corn syrup in the fruit mix. As I have mentioned I bought it without looking the ingredients and had to use it up.
Recipe
Eggless Fruit & Nuts Bars Recipe
Ingredients
- ¾ cup Whole Wheat Pastry flour
- ¼ teaspoon Baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon Baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ½ cup Light Brown Sugar (I used white sugar)
- 3 cups (any combination) Chopped Dried Fruits (I used 1lb Fruit And Peel Mix)
- 3 cups Chopped Nuts (Any Nuts)
- ¾ cup Buttermilk (Instead Of 3 Eggs)
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Ginger (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven at 350F for 15 minutes.
- Grease and dust a 13x9 inch pan with little flour.
- In a large bowl whisk together whole wheat pastry flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, ground ginger (if using) and light brown sugar.
- Also add the chopped dried fruits and nuts of your choice. Make sure that the dried fruits are not lumped together. Use your fingers mix it thoroughly.
- In a liquid measuring mug, measure ¾th cup of buttermilk and vanilla extract; whisk it nicely.
- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix it well. Since it's a lot of dried fruits and nuts, chances are the flour mixture in the bottom may not be combined well.
- Spread the batter into the prepared pan and use a spatula to evenly press it.
- I baked for 30 minutes first and then slowly increased the time and around 37th minute took the pan from the oven. Check the center of the cake with a toothpick to see if it's done and time it accordingly because ovens may vary.
- Once out of the oven, leave the pan on a wire rack and let it cool completely before cutting it. Let it cool completely; don't be in a hurry or else you will end up with broken pieces. Anyways the bars taste better the next day and gets even better later, so be patient. These bars will keep good for 2 weeks in room temperature and store for months in the refrigerator.
My Notes
- Any combination of nuts and dried fruits can be used in this fruitcake/bars. The only thing to be followed is that it should be 3 cups of nuts and 3 cups of dried fruits. This time I used one pound (16oz) box of Old English style fruit and citrus peel instead of dried fruits and a mixture of cashews, pistachios and hazelnuts.
- The fruit and citrus peel mix saves the time chopping dry fruits into small pieces and also the bars taste exactly like the fruitcake we get from stores. But I have to agree that it's not as healthy as using actually dried fruits because the fruit is sweetened with high fructose corn syrup. I used it because I had bought that tub in a whim and had to use it.
- The original recipe uses ¾th cup of brown sugar, but I used only ½ cup because the fruit mix is also sweetened.
- I used 1.5% fat buttermilk. The buttermilk which we get in the US is pretty thick, it's more liked thinned yogurt. I did not dilute it with water because I did not want it to lose its acidity since we are replacing it for 3 eggs in the recipe.
- As soon as I removed the pan from the oven the cake looked pale/whitish on the top. I had done the toothpick test and it came out clean and that's why I took out the pan. When I saw the cake I was worried maybe the buttermilk had curdled or something. But as it cooled, it looked very normal with a brown color. Also, the bar was a little hard on the day I baked. I thought I had baked too long. Again by the next day it had become soft and got only even better after that.
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Sharmila Bhattar says
What is wholewheat pastry flour? Can I use normal wheat flour?
Madhuram says
Whole wheat pastry flour is flour made from a softer variety of wheat. You can find detailed information in this blog post. You can use regular wheat flour too.
Jeena says
Hi,
I made this today and we loved it. Good to get back to baking after a long time. Thanks for your recipe and detailed instructions
Madhuram says
You're very welcome, Jeena.
Anusha says
Hi,
I want to make them as muffins. Will it work ? How long would I need to bake them ? Can you give me a rough estimate ?
Thanks,
Anusha
Madhu says
Hi Madhu,
What can i use instead of buttermilk for this recipe ?
Regards,
Madhu
Madhuram says
You can use unsweetened applesauce or yogurt.
Deepika says
Tried these out and they were simply delicious. I used dried papaya, dried figs and dried mango for the dried fruit and they worked great. Love this recipe for its healthy and at the same time yummu...
Madhuram says
Thanks Deepika.
meera says
I tried this wonderful recipe of yours, and it turned out GREAT. I have decided not to use apricots next time, as they didn't blend with other dried fruits. Thanks for the recipe.
Madhuram says
You're welcome Meera.
Reena says
Hi Madhu
first of all thanks for the amazing recipes.
Now my question is what kind of fruits you have used?I am sorry for asking such silly questions but I do not know much about baking so want to know what are the my options of fruits to be used?
Thanks-
Reena
Madhuram says
I used a candied peel mix, which is available during this season in the baking aisle. It's a mix of pineapple, orange peel etc.
Saras Pantulu says
What is pastry flour?
Madhuram says
Pastry flour is made from soft wheat. It has lesser gluten content than plain white flour, making it suitable for delicate cakes and pastries. It is also called cake flour. Whole wheat pastry flour is also available these days. Check out this to know more about different types of flours: http://www.egglesscooking.com/recipes/all-purpose-flour/
NSG says
Yesterday I tried these bars... Just sliced and they have come out sooo good.
Have sent you a mail too..
The slices are a little soft, though its baked properly.
Is that okay? Are they supposed to be hard?
Thank you for such a wonderful healthy recipe.
Yojana says
Thanks for detailed explanation MAdhu. I am making this cake today to take it to India on May1st.. I have made many other cookies from you website.. Whenevr i find time I will mail you from India to let you know the commenst of my family when they eat the cookies.. Thanks again.
You're most welcome Yojana. Have a safe and fun vacation.
Yojana says
Madhu
Thanks for your reply but my other question is still unanswered. I have comented twice in the same post.. Sorry for the trouble but please let me know about the flour and the pan I can use. NOt repeating the question as its laready there in the comment section.
I remember it Yojana. I was answering the questions and got some other work. So I thought I will get back once I'm done with it. Let me answer it in that comment itself.
Yojana says
Madhu
one more question -- I am going to India this month end and I plan to make most of your eggless cookies and also some cakes and take them to India and impress /surprise my family and in-laws. I am all hooked on to your website these days and find time to bake despite of having a 4 mnth old 🙂
I know that most of the cookies will stay good and do not need refrigeration.. But how about this cake , can I make it now and keep it in the refrigerator and pack them in a plastic box while travelling. Will it stay good ? and also about other cakes and muffins .
Yojana, what you could do is bake it ahead. Cut them into bars and wrap them individually and freeze it in a zip loc bag.
Yojana says
Hi Madhu
I want to bake this cake . I have all the ingrediends except WWPF. You have mentioned to one of your visitors that regular chapathi flour can be used and equal parts of APF and wheat floue can be used.. What should I use and also to let you know the chapati flour I use is whole wheat flour+bran.
Another question is that I dont have a 13x9 inch pan. I have a 9" square pan and a loaf pan of 9" .. Which one would fit the amount of batter for this recipe ?
Yojana, if you see the recipe it uses only 3/4th cup of flour and has a whole lot of dried fruits and nuts. So using whole wheat flour/chapathi flour should not distract the taste. Whole wheat pastry flour is milled from soft wheat as against hard wheat, so the texture is more fine than the regular whole wheat flour making it suitable for baked goods. So even though the whole wheat pastry flour has the bran and germ intact it is more subtle than regular wheat flour. So where I have used a considerable amount of whole wheat pastry flour (like 2-3 cups, in a cookie, muffin, cake recipe), I would suggest using a mix of regular whole wheat flour and all purpose flour. In this recipe you could simply use plain all purpose flour or a mix or whole wheat flour because it is just 3/4th of a cup.
Regarding the size; you could use a 9x5 inch loaf pan. If you see the original recipe (http://joyofbaking.com/DriedFruitandNutLoaf.html), only a loaf pan is used. Make sure that you bake it for a longer time though. I think it is mentioned 60-75 minutes. I have not baked this in a loaf pan, so I do not know the exact time. It is also mentioned that this keeps well for 2 weeks at room temperature and for months in the refrigerator.
kavitha says
Thanks for the quick reply....
kavitha says
Hi,,
I'm new visitor here. I searched in google then I got your blog. This is really very nice with out using egg...I like it very much. And I have doubt about in this recipe
What is "whole wheat pastry flour" Where can we get it?
Thanks Kavitha. If you live in US, you can find whole wheat pastry flour in the organic aisle of some of the regular grocery stores itself. Look for brands like Bob's Red Mill, Arrow Head, King Arthur etc. Otherwise you can find it in Whole Foods and similar health food stores.
mukss says
The cake didn't come out hard...
mukss says
I am baking the fruit cake right now...but after 30 mins it is still undone, the batter is still wet!!!
Hi, are you baking it in a 13x9 inch pan or some other pan? Did you preheat the oven? Have you made any other changes in the recipes? Mine took about 37 minutes. Try increasing the temperature to 375F.
Swarna says
Hi Madhuram
Thanks for the quick reply...will very definetly try and post my outcome...you should think about publishing eggless baking book...first order will be mine.....
Ramya says
Hi Madhu,
I was really thrilled to see my name mentioned in your blog!! I actually stopped by your blog to get the recipe for the onion crackers and also a breakfast bar and I stumbled upon the vegan fruit cake recipe. Its been a while since I made a fruit cake and you have tempted me to make one now! Its really nice of you to incorporate visitors ideas and thoughts in your blog and your recipe.
Anyways, thanks so much for all your wonderful recipes and keep them coming!
You're most welcome Ramya and thank you for the idea.
Soma says
last week i baked my first eggless cake ever, without substitute & that was very encouraging. Now i can slowly dare to try your mouthwatering recipes! That bar looks like a delicious cake:-)
rachel says
I just got into the world of eggless baking 😛 the first one a sucess being a brownie...the fruit and nut bars are just beautiful.
Brownies really come out well without eggs. You should try this one Rachel, it's so tasty.
Swarna says
Hi Madhuram
As usual ur recipe is astounding, I would like to use full fat yogurt, how much of it is needed to replace the buttermilk?
Thanks!
Hi Swarna, you could use 2 tablespoons of yogurt and dilute it with 2 tablespoons of water for each egg.
Pavithra Kodical says
Wow...Healthy and delicious bars..Perfect 🙂
Madhumathi says
Wow..these bars look so gorgeous!And you have made it all healthy 🙂
Shree says
Looks great.. going into my 2make list 😀
Dimah says
WOW! I just saw this recipe and it looks amazing!
mangala bhat says
Thanks for ur help ...Madhu 🙂
krystyna says
I love this version.
Thanks!
suparna says
Hi Madhuram,
Great healthy n filling bars 😛 must be very nutritious with all those nuts...I wouldn't mind munching on them often in a single day 😉 gorgeous click.
TC
Ashwini says
OMG that looks so yummy. Heathy too with all nuts and eggless too..Bookmarked.
Radha says
Hi Madhu,
I have been following your recipes for a while,must tell you they are very precise and absolutely delicious.I have a list piled up.This sure looks yummy.Will try it soon.
A quick question what is whole wheat pastry flour and what dry fruits would you suggest?
Thank you very much for the compliments Radha. Whole wheat pastry flour is a low protein flour and is much softer and fine textured than regular wheat flour thereby producing lighter baked goods. It's a very good substitute for all purpose flour. WWPF gives results similar to white flour but has the goodness of whole grains. But for this recipe you could go with regular wheat flour itself and it won't make any difference. You can find WWPF in health food stores/organic stores like Whole Foods. If you are baking cakes and muffins which call for WWPF and you don't have it use equal parts all purpose flour and whole wheat flour.
You could use any combinatin of dry fruits. Last time I used dates, dried apricots and figs.
mahimaa says
these bars are so guilt free and a real treat for breakfast and evening snack time... i am bookmarking and trying for sure 🙂
i have question... is baking soda ok to consume? is it not bad for health? can u suggest an alternative to it?
one more Q, do u use wordpress by any chance?
Mahimaa, I don't see any harm in using baking soda in baking recipes because it's a very negligble amount. Take for example this recipe which uses only 1/4 teaspoon and when you divide it among 28 servings it's very very less. But I see that excessive consumption of huge amounts of baking soda (like some athletes do) is highly dangerous.
I use wordpress.
Priya Sriram says
Ohhh!! It looks gorgeous Madhu! 🙂 🙂
Another healthy masterpiece from your kitchen!!
Thanks Priya. It's healthy indeed, if you add real dried fruits.
mangala bhat says
hi..madhu how r u?...hey this bar looks soo yummy wanted to try it asap.
hey i wonder whole wheat pastryflour lookslike ...allpurposen flour right?or in dark brown color..actully i got one from chainese store but it looks just like all-purpose flour.plz helpme 🙁
Hi Mangala, whole wheat pastry flour doesn't look too white or too brown, somehwere in between. You could use regular whole wheat flour itself and you won't feel the difference because it has so much dried fruits and nuts.
Rajitha says
i do not have to go to the grocery store hungry to pile on my cart..i even do it after a big breakfast...coz..then i am in control of my hunger and i somehow form an illusion that i will be able to maintain portion control later too....yeah...i do live in lala land 😀
I guess many of us live in that land, Rajitha.
madhu says
this looks amazing and i wouldnt doubt its taste either.... tempted to try it asap!! 😀
Thanks Madhu. I know you mean it when you say you are tempted to try it.
Asha says
YUMMO! I would eat a piece for breakfast easily, love Pista and nuts there! 🙂
Anoop got away by hair length! ;D
Asha the taste is so addictive we would have it throughout the day. Ya, Anoop had a close call yesterday.
Priya says
Fruits n nut bars looks amazing Madhu...wish i could have rite now..also eggless sure am gonna try soon..
Thanks Priya.