I think the saying “all good things come in small packages” was made with these Chocolate Fruit Loaves in mind. They’re small in size but mighty in yum!
After I made my own mince pies, I became quite obsessed with all things dried fruit. I had never really cared for Christmas cake, I think it was the mixed peel that put me off. Talking of being put off, don’t let the fact that this cake has prunes as a primary ingredient put you off. The prunes are the secret hero of these little loaves making them  marvellously moist and moreish!
When I was a kid, I used to hate Christmas cake. However, I’m pleased to report that these lovely little loaves are the opposite of the Christmas cakes of my youth, which were dry and crumbly and full of mixed peel. These little beauties are rich, bouncy and full of all my favourite dried fruit and there’s not a piece of mixed peel in sight! I’ve left the ingredients “dried fruit” deliberately vague because really you can use whatever you have to hand or whatever tickles your fancy – dates, cranberries, raisins, sultanas, cherries, figs – you name it you can use it.
This was a Nigella recipe that I first adapted to the Thermomix and then adapted to my mini loaf tin because… Christmas cuteness! If like me, you only have one mini loaf tin, you’ll have to make one big mixture and cook it in two batches, but if you’ve got two tins, you can pop them both in the ...