Fruitcake

December 27th is National Fruitcake Day! You must celebrate by sampling some fruitcake. Why not take the plunge, and bake a fruitcake from scratch? Use this recipe! There are some who shrug off the idea of a fruitcake and would much rather bake something like my amaretto bundt cake. I suggest you give fruitcake a chance!

Share the fruitcake love on social media today using the hashtags #NationalFruitcakeDay, #FruitcakeDay and #RecipesForHolidays.

Be sure to follow my December Food Holidays page so you never miss a food holiday in the month of December.

The History of Fruitcake:

From PBS.org:

Fruitcake is an ancient goody, with the oldest versions a sort of energy bar made by the Romans to sustain their soldiers in battle. The Roman fruitcake was a mash of barley, honey, wine and dried fruit, often pomegranate seeds. Fruitcake can also be traced to ancient Egypt when delicious and long-lasting cakes were placed in the great pyramids with deceased royal dignitaries to sweeten their experience in the afterlife.

What you might recognize as a modern-style fruitcake – a moist, leavened dessert studded with fruits and nuts – was probably first baked in the early Middle Ages in Europe. Cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg were symbols of culinary sophistication, and these sweet spices started appearing alongside fruit in many savory dishes – especially breads, but also main courses.

Before long, most cuisines had some sort of fruited breads or cakes that were early versions of the modern fruitcake.

Fruitcakes came to America with the European colonists. Colonists used sugar to preserving fruit for use across the seasons. One of the favorite methods of preserve fruit by candying it. Colonists were able to keep fruit from the summer harvest to use in their Christmas confections, and fruitcakes became one of the most popular seasonal desserts. Fruitcakes were also popular due to their legendary shelf life, which, in an era before mechanical refrigeration, was extremely desirable.

As late as the 1950s, fruitcakes were a widely esteemed part of the American holiday tradition. A 1953 Los Angeles Times article called fruitcake a “holiday must,” and in 1958, the Christian Science Monitor asked, “What Could Be a Better Gift Than Fruitcake?” But by 1989, a survey by Mastercard found that fruitcake was the least favorite gift of 75% of those polled.

🛒 Ingredients Needed:

• candied red and green cherries
• chopped candied pineapple
• chopped walnuts
• golden raisins
• butter shortening
• granulated white sugar
• eggs
• vanilla extract
• all purpose flour
• baking powder and salt

✏️ How to make Fruitcake:

*The complete, printable recipe is in the recipe card at the end of this post.

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10-inch tube pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine the candied fruit, walnuts and raisins; set aside. In another large bowl, use an electric mixer to combine the shortening and the sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.
3. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt; add to the sugar mixture and mix well. Stir in the fruit mixture.
4. Transfer the cake batter to the prepared pan. Bake for 2 hours or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

➡️ Tips and Substitutions:

• Use a tube pan, not a bundt pan.
• You can change things up a bit with the candied fruit. Use whatever kinds of candied fruit appeal to you.
• Since the texture of the cake is dense, it’s best to use a serrated knife for slicing.
• Completely optional, but you can brush the outside of the cake with apple juice, rum or whiskey.
• Wrap and let sit for at least 24 hours before serving.

✔️ Make Ahead Tips:

You can make fruitcake up to one month in advance. Wrap it well with plastic wrap. To keep it moist, unwrap and brush it with apple juice, whiskey or rum once a week until serving.