Christmas Fruitcake on a saucer ready to eat.

It’s Time To Make A Christmas Fruitcake!

So how do you feel about Christmas Fruitcake?

I am a Christmas fruitcake lover, but I know that some people “hurl” just hearing that word: fruitcake!  It is a traditional cake at the holidays that some people love and adore, and others just makes jokes and won’t touch the stuff. Which are you? Since they need to age for a while, I am getting all  my ingredients ready so that I an make it this weekend. Then I will wrap it and let it age.

All those jokes about fruitcake?  You have to admit that some of the jokes are good.

A Metaphor for Life
It's Time To Make A Christmas Fruitcake! - The Hypertufa Gardener
Helping Nana Make Christmas Fruitcake - The Hypertufa Gardener
Helpers Making Fruitcake - The Hypertufa Gardener
Now It's Time to Make A Christmas Fruitcake!

“Reality is like a fruitcake; pretty enough to look at but with all sorts of nasty things lurking just beneath the surface.”

A. Lee Martinez, Gil’s All Fright Diner

Important Information for Receivers of Fruitcake Gifts

Don’t just use it as a “doorstop” or patio paving brick.  These Christmas fruitcakes are pretty labor intensive  and expensive too. So if you have someone who makes a cake for you and gives it to you as a gift, let them know if you don’t care for the taste.  They can mark you off the list and get you something different.

I have made many of these fruitcakes through the years and had lists of people to send them to via mail. Expensive to ship also. So if you don’t like it, let the giver know. Don’t throw it out! Someone who loves Christmas fruitcake would love to have yours!

Just one caveat

If said fruitcake is NOT homemade, it is GARBAGE, so throw it out fast!

Be cautious with your helpers. Some are not there to help, but to sneak tastes! This helper was Fired!

 

I have adapted a recipe that was in the newspaper clipping my Mom had, and I can only guess it was one of her future attempts. But I have changed  it to fit what we liked during these past 25 years of baking it. I don’t candy lemon and orange peel and all that work that a true purist would do.  I purchase the candied fruit at my local grocery store.

Anyway, I thought this could be MY traditional Christmas fruitcake recipe. My Mom had always made them, but she experimented each year with a different type, almost never making one the same way. I know she made one once with graham crackers, seriously. And another time I remember one made with candy gumdrops. Ewwww!  I don’t remember eating them at all, but I probably went to My Happy Place.

Christmas fruitcake is meant to be made early, so I love to have mine ready as early as possible. November 1st is a good deadline, right? And mine are all done. I have made small loaf pan sizes this time, with just a few dozen of the tiny muffin sizes. I like to serve those with tea and imagine that I am having tea with Lord and Lady Grantham. As if they would have Mrs Patmore to tea!  ( Wow, do I miss Downton Abbey.)

Storing The Christmas Fruitcake

When your cakes are cooled, you must wrap them individually in cheesecloth or muslin dampened with sherry, brandy, or any liquor that you would like. Keep them in a dark, cool, dry place. It is not necessary to refrigerate, but you can. It keeps the cake moist and the flavors all mellow together. Check about every ten days to re-moisten the cloths.  I have some huge Tupperware containers for this. Stacked inside them and sealed, the fruitcake can be out of site so that you are not tempted to eat them too early.

You can freeze a fruitcake, but let it mellow and age for a month before you freeze it. It can’t mellow frozen.

When I mail the cakes, I send them via USPS and depending on where they are going, it cost $15 to $20 each. Most of the time I mail two together as a gift and they are quite heavy.

I have prepped a short video of my process which I will show here. And let me tell you, teaching yourself Davinci Resolve is no picnic!

And I can’t say this often enough:

If the fruitcake is NOT homemade, it is GARBAGE, so throw it out fast!

 

It's Time To Make A Christmas Fruitcake!
Yield: 24 slices or more

It's Time To Make A Christmas Fruitcake!

Prep Time: 1 day 4 hours
Cook Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 day 6 hours 30 minutes

Traditional dark and dense fruitcake best made at least a month before you plan to eat it.

Ingredients

  • 4-5 cups assorted nuts (walnuts and pecans are what I use)
  • 1 lb red candied cherries ( I like to leave these whole for pretty slices)
  • 1 lb green candied cherries ( same as above)
  • 1 cup raisins or dried cranberries ( or mixture of both)
  • 2 lb mixed candied fruit (orange and lemon peel , pineapple etc)
  • 1 cup sherry, brandy or any liquor of choice
  • 1/2 pound real butter (2 sticks)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 6 eggs, separated
  • 2 cups self-rising flour
  • 2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 tsp each of cloves, ginger, and nutmeg
  • 3/4 cup preserves or jam ( strawberry, grape, apricot)
  • additional liquor for soaking/wrapping while it ages

Instructions

  1. Mix all the fruit and nuts together in a large bowl , You may coarsely chop nuts, if desired)
  2. Add the 1 cup of sherry and mix thoroughly
  3. Cover and let set, mixing occasionally, for a minimum of 24 hours
  4. Cream butter with sugar
  5. Add egg yolks and mix well.
  6. Mix in all the spices and then stir in flour. Batter is stiff as you mix it.
  7. Add preserves/jam and mix well.
  8. Fold in the fruit and nut mixture.
  9. Beat the egg whites until it forms peaks.
  10. Fold into mixture of batter and fruit/nuts.
  11. Grease pans. Line pans with foil or parchment paper if possible for easy removal, bundt pan grease thoroughly. I have had beautiful cakes in bundt pans, and heartbreaking disasters getting it out.
  12. Bake at 300
  13. Large bundt pan: approx 2.5 hours
  14. regular loaf pans: approx 2 hours
  15. small loaf pans: approx 1 hour
  16. For all times, bake until toothpick test shows done.
  17. Let cool for 20 minutes, then turn cake out onto wire rack for cooling.
  18. You may sprinkle or mist liquor on cake while cooling.
  19. Wrap and store in liquor-dampened cloth for 4 weeks in sealed container or bag. Every week or ten days, re-dampen with liquor, re-wrap and seal again.
  20. The cakes should be cured in dark, dry, cool place. In a refrigerator is fine.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

24

Serving Size:

1 slice

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1201Total Fat: 69gSaturated Fat: 15gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 51gCholesterol: 67mgSodium: 591mgCarbohydrates: 129gFiber: 9gSugar: 76gProtein: 25g

These amounts will vary depending on the size of your pan and how thin your slices.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a comment on the blog or share a photo on Pinterest

 I hope you decide to make a traditional fruitcake or anything that you can call your own for the Holidays. Family and tradition are what we cherish in our memories of home and all our “gatherings.”  ( See more of my Easy Recipes here.)
 
Make yours this season. Or continue those ones that you already do.
 
Your family will always remember.


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19 Comments

  1. I really appreciate you sharing each and every bit of your recipe. Can’t wait to try and serve this over for Christmas!

    1. All mine are done already and aging. Hurry! Christmas will be here before you know it!

  2. Joy Snyder says:

    Kim, how long do you bake the mini muffin size cakes? And how many small loaf pans does the recipe make? My Husband loves fruitcake! Me, not too much! But I’m willing to give it a go!

    1. Those small mini-loaves give me about 8 or 10 based on how high I fill it. Those tiny muffins bake really quick, like 15-20 minutes but really you just have to test them to get a feel if done. They are so cute! Especially when you just want to serve a bite!

  3. Vicki Zwiebel says:

    I didn’t see where you mail them. Would you mail me a couple of small ones? Can you take PayPal money?

    1. LOL, I don’t sell them at all. Just serve them. You are funny!

  4. Vicki Zwiebel says:

    Your fruitcake is THE best! I said it wrong last year…HaHa
    I can’t make it because I’m the only one who eats it and I can’t or shouldn’t eat a whole one by myself. Happy Holidays to you all

    1. Thanks, and I know what you mean. I have to limit the amount I make because I cannot have it in the house!

  5. Vicki Zwiebel says:

    You’re fruitcake is the best!

  6. Although I’m not a fruitcake fan, I appreciate knowing more about what goes into it. You presented it in a fun and entertaining way!

  7. I don’t like fruitcake, but you’ve almost convinced me to give it another try!

    1. It looks like a hard recipe but it’s not. Just a lot of ingredients.

  8. I have never tried a fruitcake before, but this looks very good!

  9. HI! Great recipe! I’ve never attempted a fruit cake because my family usually makes Gum Drop Cake instead, but this looks so yummy I think I’ll attempt your recipe! Thanks for sharing!

  10. Kim Smith says:

    Thanks, It is a task to tackle, but I consider it my Christmas tradition.

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