This crowd-pleasing, easy-bake sultana cake recipe is a classic tea time treat. Every bite is filled with juicy, plump sultanas. We're adding a few special ingredients to really amplify the flavour a bit more than a classic sultana cake. This recipe also doesn't require you to dredge the sultanas in extra flour to prevent them from sinking whilst baking.
It's perfect for a morning or afternoon tea, a lunch box snack or to make as a special treat for someone else. Just wrap it up in brown paper and tie it up with a pretty string - it makes a lovely, inexpensive and thoughtful homemade gift.
Whilst you have your loaf tin out, why not also try this easy 4-ingredient banana loaf, served with butter rosette flowers?
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What's to love about this recipe
- This is an easy sultana cake, no special baking skills required.
- With the addition of a few extra ingredients, this cake is flavour-packed.
- No dredging of the sultanas in extra flour to prevent them sinking. The extra flour can often lead to the cake being dry. Instead, the consistency of the cake mix is firm enough to hold the fruit in place.
- Briefly cooking the sultanas before baking ensures they're plump and juicy.
- Takes only an hour to make from start to finish.
- Pairs perfectly with a cup of tea.
- Always a crowd-pleaser.
- Makes a great gift for a fruit loaf lover.
Key ingredient notes and substitutions
**Please see the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full list of ingredients.
Sultanas - It is a sultana cake recipe, but if you only have raisins, you can use them instead. Just follow the same process by cooking them for 4 minutes beforehand.
Unsalted butter - Can be replaced with salted butter. The butter needs to be at room temperature.
Top tip: Speed up the process of softening butter by heating a glass bowl with an inch of water in the microwave, until the water boils. Throw the water out and turn the bowl upside down over the butter for a few minutes.
Caster sugar - If you haven't got caster sugar where you are, you can easily make your own by whizzing granulated sugar in a food processor until it's somewhere between the consistency of granulated sugar and powdered/icing sugar. You can also use golden caster sugar. If all else fails, just use normal granulated sugar.
Large eggs - As with the butter, the eggs also need to be at room temperature.
Top tip: Speed up the process of bringing cold eggs up to room temperature by placing them in a bowl with hot water for about five minutes.
Flour - We use self raising flour instead of all purpose flour, so no need for baking powder or bicarbonate of soda.
Special ingredients - These are the ingredients that you don't often find in many old fashioned sultana cake recipes. We're using lemon zest for a bit of zing, mixed spice for depth of flavour and glace cherries for extra juiciness and hints of colour.
We're only adding a quarter teaspoon of mixed spice because you want the flavour to be subtle. You can of course add more, but in our experience it will taste more like a Christmassy fruit cake than a sultana loaf cake. Still delicious though!
If you don't want to add lemon zest, you can leave it out or replace it with vanilla essence.
How to make sultana cake - Step-by-step
- Preheat the oven to 170℃/338℉/gas mark 3. Line a standard 2lb loaf tin (21cm x 11cm x 7cm) with parchment paper.
- Add the sultanas to a small saucepan and add just enough water to cover the sultanas.
- Bring the water up to a boil and cook over a medium heat for 4 minutes to soften and hydrate the sultanas.
- Fully drain the water from the sultanas and set aside to cool slightly.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the softened butter and caster sugar.
- Beat until light in colour and creamy in consistency, about 3-4 minutes. You can use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer.
- Add the room temperature eggs one by one, beating the mixture after each addition.
- Add the zest from one small lemon and briefly beat again.
- Sift over the self raising flour along with the mixed spice. Using a large spoon or spatula, gently fold the flour into the egg mixture. Don't overmix.
- Quarter the glace cherries and add it along with the sultanas to the cake mixture.
- Gently fold the fruit in, again careful not to overmix.
- Spoon the sultana cake mix into the prepared baking tin and level the top.
Optional - Dot a few extra quartered glace cherries over the top, pressing them into the mixture to hold them in place. - Bake for 40 minutes on the middle shelf of the oven. After 40 minutes, loosely cover the tin with a piece of tin foil to protect the top of the cake from browning too much.
Bake for a further 10 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean and the top of the cake feels firm to the touch.
- Allow the cake to cool in it's cake pan for 10 minutes before lifting it out onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Treat yourself to a fresh slice and a cup of tea!
Tips to make the best sultana cake
- Use kitchen scales and weigh the ingredients carefully.
- Make sure to use softened butter and room temperature eggs for perfect consistency in the batter.
- Don't overmix when folding in the flour, sultanas and cherries.
- Cover the cake with tin foil for the last 10 minutes of baking time to prevent the cake from browning too much on top.
- All ovens are different, so check the cake towards the end, if it's golden brown, firm on top and a cake tester comes out clean, it's done. Baking it any longer will lead to a dry cake.
How long does sultana cake keep?
If you seal the cake in an airtight container like a cake tin or lidded plastic box it will keep well for 2-3 days.
Can you freeze sultana cake?
Yes, it freezes really well. Make sure the cake is completely cooled down to room temperature before wrapping it thoroughly in plastic wrap. Place the cake in a lidded container, or freezer bag, and freeze for up to 3 months. To defrost, remove from the freezer the day before and allow it to thaw in a cool area in your house.
More recipes made with fruit
More tea time treat recipes
Lithuanian lazy cookies - Tinginys
Rooibos Cappuccino - Red Cappuccino
Toscakaka - Swedish almond cake
Biscoff slices, no bake
Recipe
The best sultana cake
Equipment you may need
- 1 standard 2lb loaf tin (21cm x 11cm x 7cm)
Ingredients
- 180 grams sultanas
- water to cover the sultanas
- 140 grams unsalted butter - softened
- 140 grams caster sugar
- 3 large eggs - at room temperature
- zest from one small lemon
- 225 grams self raising flour
- ¼ teaspoon mixed spice
- 10 glace cherries - and an optional few extra for decoration
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 170℃/338℉/gas mark 3. Line a standard 2lb loaf tin (21cm x 11cm x 7cm) with parchment paper.
- Add the sultanas to a small saucepan and add just enough water to cover the sultanas.
- Bring the water up to a boil and cook over a medium heat for 4 minutes to soften and hydrate the sultanas.
- Fully drain the water from the sultanas and set aside to cool slightly.
- In a large mixing bowl, beat together the softened butter and caster sugar until light in colour and creamy in consistency, about 3-4 minutes. You can use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer.
- Add the room temperature eggs one by one, beating the mixture after each addition.
- Add the zest from one small lemon and briefly beat again.
- Sift over the self raising flour along with the mixed spice. Using a large spoon or spatula, gently fold the flour into the egg mixture. Don't overmix.
- Quarter the glace cherries and add it along with the sultanas to the cake mixture. Gently fold it in, again careful not to overmix.
- Spoon the sultana cake mix into the prepared baking tin and level the top. Optional - Dot a few extra quartered glace cherries over the top, pressing them into the mixture to hold them in place.
- Bake for 40 minutes on the middle shelf of the oven. After 40 minutes, loosely cover the tin with a piece of tin foil to protect the top of the cake from browning too much. Bake for a further 10 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean and the top of the cake feels firm to the touch.
- Allow the cake to cool in it's tin for 10 minutes before lifting it out onto a wire cooling rack to cool down completely. Treat yourself to a fresh slice and a cup of tea!
**Nutritional data disclaimer**
Please keep in mind that the nutritional information provided below is calculated by a third party and we cannot guarantee the accuracy. We try our best to give you the most accurate information, but we do not take responsibility for errors that may be present. Also, the nutritional value of the recipe may change depending on the exact brands and products used. We recommend that you consult with a qualified healthcare professional or registered dietitian for personalised advice on your dietary needs.
Nutrition
For food safety advice, including guidance on food allergies
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