Chef Tristan Welch has revealed that the secret ingredient to making a beautifully moist fruit cake is adding leftover vegetable peelings to the mix before baking
Fruit cake, known for its rich taste and vibrant flavours, can be a tricky bake to master – with the risk of ending up too dry.
While it might seem logical to add more liquid for a moist result, one celeb chef reckons there’s a better trick waiting in your kitchen scraps. Tristan Welch recommends using the nutrient-packed peels from raw veggies to boost the moisture in your fruit cakes.
These peels not only add colour and flavour but also extra moisture, making them ideal for baking and cutting down on waste – good news for both your pocket and the planet.
Often tossed aside or composted, these peelings are full of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that are beneficial when eaten. Chef Tristan shared his top tip on TikTok, where he posted a video on his account (@chef_tristan_welch) saying: “The secret to this fruit cake is vegetable peelings. Using veggie peelings will keep your cake beautifully moist and is a great way to avoid wasting food!”
He suggests throwing in peelings from carrots, parsnips, apples, pears, and broccoli stalks, which naturally sweeten the cake.
Other great additions include thinly sliced cabbage and even Brussels sprouts, but he warns against potato peels for this recipe. When it comes to how much to use, Tristan advises saving your peelings and freezing them until you’ve got 260g ready to go, reports the Express.
Fruit cake recipe
Ingredients
- 260g veggie peelings
- 150g coconut oil (plus extra to grease the loaf tin)
- 225g light brown muscovado sugar
- Four medium eggs
- 225g self-raising flour
- One tsp bicarbonate of soda
- One tsp mixed spice
- One tsp ground cinnamon
- One tsp ground ginger
- 75g sultanas
- 75g currents
- 75g mixed peel
- 50g glace cherries
- 100g walnuts chopped
- Finely grated zest of one orange
Method
Whipping up a fruit cake is a piece of cake, and it’s super simple with just five steps involved. Begin by blitzing the sugar, eggs, coconut oil, and veggie peelings in a food processor.
Then throw in some spices, bicarbonate of soda, self-raising flour and orange zest and keep on blending. Next, gently fold in the walnuts and dried fruit into the mixture and pop it into a lined loaf tin.
Bake your creation at 170C for roughly 35-40 minutes. Tristan recommended: “Test [the sponge] with a skewer and, if it comes out dry, you know it’s cooked and ready to go! I love to leave this cake for a day and then have a slice toasted and spread with hot butter – it’s absolutely gorgeous.”