Vegan Fruit Cake

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 140ºC.
2. Oil a 23 cm diameter, 7.5 cm deep, round tin, and line with baking parchment. Wrap the outside of the tin with brown paper and tie it securely with string. This will protect the edges from scorching in the oven.
3. Chop all the nuts and roast in the oven for 10–15 minutes, watching carefully to make sure they don’t burn. Place the dried fruits, oil, orange juice and sugar in a heavy-based pan, add 300 ml water, then bring to the boil and simmer over a gentle heat for 5 minutes. Cool, then fold in all the other ingredients. Transfer the batter to the prepared tin and bake for 2 1/2 hours, or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. If it browns too much before it is fully cooked, make a circle of foil a bit larger than the cake, break a large hole in the centre and place it over the cake to protect the sides.
4. Allow to cool in the tin, turn out on to a wire rack, prick all over with a fine skewer and sprinkle the remaining rum all over the cake.
5. Wrap in baking parchment, then in foil, and store for up to 6 weeks.