The much maligned fruitcake

[PeterT]

... yes it's the alcohol/liqueur that makes a good fruit cake. My mother in law makes a great one with loads of sherry. You have to keep topping it up with sherry every few days.

 

[donna]

The best fruitcake was my Granny's. She always made many to give as gifts. She always doctored it (her words) with good bourbon.

 

[MaryDee]

It's amazing how much fruitcake, even the commercial horrors, can be improved by keeping it wrapped in cheesecloth soaked in brandy for several weeks. Then steam and serve hot with hard sauce (of course, plenty of brandy in the hard sauce).

That being said, it is now 27 years since I became an "empty nester." I haven't made fruitcake since!

 

[Suzanne A]

This sounds good and if I use cranberries which I love & which are not as hard as marbles, it might be darned good. As long as it doesn't have those hard little yellow and green squares regular fruit cake is fill of

 

[MaryDee]

That's candied citron and I always used less than half as much as the recipe called for. On the other hand, candied cherries were very popular with my family, so I used more. My recipe had lots of raisins, golden raisins, dried currants, and nuts. If anyone is interested, I can dig out the recipe, especially since we're supposed to get snowed/iced in again.

 

[Anna Elizabeth Henry]

That's candied citron and I always used less than half as much as the recipe called for. On the other hand, candied cherries were very popular with my family, so I used more. My recipe had lots of raisins, golden raisins, dried currants, and nuts. If anyone is interested, I can dig out the recipe, especially since we're supposed to get snowed/iced in again.

Please do share if you can find it easily! It sounds really good

 

[MaryDee]

Unfortunately, the fruitcake recipe appears to be among the missing! Sorry!

 

[Anna Elizabeth Henry]

Unfortunately, the fruitcake recipe appears to be among the missing! Sorry!

Thanks for looking for it though, shame it's missing.

 

[bankerpapaw]

I love fruitcake.

 

[donna]

The picture of the fruitcake looks so good. Can't wait to have some.

 

[Patrick H]

I subscribe to the notion that there are only a half dozen fruit cakes in the entire world, and people who receive them just keep re-gifting them.

 

[nitrofd]

I subscribe to the notion that there are only a half dozen fruit cakes in the entire world, and people who receive them just keep re-gifting them.

I re-gift at least a dozen each year.

 

[White Feather]

There seems to be an "infinite number" of stanzas in the "Song of the Temperance Union". I remember one from the old Smothers Brothers show that goes as best as I can remember: We never eat fruit cake 'cause fruit cake has yeast and one little bite turns a man to a beast. And can you imagine a sorrier sight than a man in the gutter with crumbs on his face.

 

[JohnW.]

Fruitcake trivia - there are actually only seven fruitcakes in the entire world, people just keep giving them to each other

This is true.

 

[diane]

My daughter tried her first fruitcake this year and...well, it's tasty but festive-looking it ain't! In fact, I'm not so sure she didn't make a loaf of pemmican...

 

[War Horse]

View attachment 117191

Fruitcake is a holiday staple even if its dreaded by many today. Believe it or not but its been around since the Roman times - their version included pomegranates, raisins and pine nuts mixed into barley based mixture, which was more akin to a modern power bar. The modern version we know today was born in the Middle Ages when dried fruit became available in Europe. Fruitcake really took off during the 17th century when in the American Colonies they discovered that high concentrations of sugar could preserve fruits. This discovery provided an excess of candied fruit, hence making fruitcakes affordable and more popular as a result.

The tradition of making fruitcakes for special occasions such as weddings and holidays gained in popularity in the 18th and 19th centuries and due to the cost of the ingredients as it was considered a grand indulgence between the nuts, dried or candied fruit and brandy. But, as with many traditions, how this confection came to be exclusively associated with the Christmas season is still a mystery. Many speculate its holiday association comes from it being a special treat made it a go to recipe for bakers during the season. It also travels well and keeps for a long period of time which made it an ideal holiday treat to send to someone as a gift.

Most American mass-produced fruit cakes are alcohol-free today, but traditional recipes are saturated with liqueurs or brandy and often covered with powdered sugar, both apparently prevent mold. Here's my contribution to the fruitcake hall of fame, a simple and quick treat that isn't heavy and is actually enjoyed by my family and friends.

Mini Christmas Fruitcakes

Ingredients

• 13 1/4 ounces mixed dried fruit (cranberries work especially well with the carrot cake!)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup sweet sherry (brandy)
• 1 egg (lightly beaten)
• 16 1/2 ounces carrot cake mix
• 1 cup sliced almonds (or pecans)

You also need 8 mini loaf pans

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Lightly grease 8 mini loaf pans. Line bases with parchment paper.
2. Bring fruit, 1/4 cup water and oil to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 5 mins. Let cool, then beat in sherry and egg. Add cake mix and almonds and mix until combined. Distribute between loaf pans, smooth tops and bake for 35-40 mins, until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool completely in pans.

I'm convinced there is only one fruitcake in existence and it has traveled the globe for centuries.

 

[Jamieva]

If you are a costco member i highly recommend their fruit cake. it is crazy good.

 

[unicornforge]

Fresh, recently baked homemade fruitcakes with quality ingredients are nice.

On the other hand, I knew someone who would substitute things like cheap chocolate bars for baker's chocolate in recipes and then wonder why her resulting deserts and other mangled items tasted terrible.

So much food now-a-days has poor ingredients and derives their taste from chemical flavorings. People have forgotten what real food tastes like. So returning to real ingredients used historically would make the fruitcakes taste a lot better.

 

[nitrofd]

Fresh, recently baked homemade fruitcakes with quality ingredients are nice.

On the other hand, I knew someone who would substitute things like cheap chocolate bars for baker's chocolate in recipes and then wonder why her resulting deserts and other mangled items tasted terrible.

So much food now-a-days has poor ingredients and derives their taste from chemical flavorings. People have forgotten what real food tastes like. So returning to real ingredients used historically would make the fruitcakes taste a lot better.

There is a great deal of truth in your post.an example of what we use is Vanilla Extract.even though you can buy pure extract in the stores we buy ours as it is pure Madagascar Vanilla Extract buy we get the on e that is 5X the strength.there is a very small percentage of water in it and use use a lot less but the taste difference is unbelievable.this is one of the reasons my wife is a champion award winning baker.it is all in the ingredients that you use.

 

[samuel orris]

I am strange, since I love fruitcake.

Nothing strange at all. I believe you are in good company.