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Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 7,746
Registered: ‎03-15-2010

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?

This old thread just popped in -- someone gave me a heart.

 

I hope those of you baking fruitcake this year will enjoy it!

 

I may have a slice or two, but don't dare keep a whole one in the house.  

 

Too much temptation!

Honored Contributor
Posts: 32,492
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?

We have made them every year for more than 30 years.  It is based on an old recipe from a Betty Crocker cookbook, but we simply add the fruits and nuts we like rather than what they call for.

 

They are cooked slowly in the oven, then basted with a glaze of orange marmalade and Grand Marnier, and basted with more Grand Marnier at least every week for a minimum of 2 weeks, and more like 3 or 4 weeks.  We make then in 6" rounds or small tin loaf pans.  

 

They are wonderful!  We've kept them as long as Valentines day in a cool dry place and they just get better and better.  

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,348
Registered: ‎06-13-2017

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?

That reminds me of a cake my mother use to make a christmas, she called it an orange slice cake. But it had nuts, the candied orange slices and some other flavored ones, dates, I do not know what all. And at some point, like the next day, she would pour orange juice on top of it. Like you said it would stay moist and delicous for a long time.

She also made a pie she called a japanese fruit pie. It was basically like a coconut pie with nuts and some dried fruits.decadent.

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,368
Registered: ‎07-17-2011

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?hav

@Tigriss

 

Several years ago on Recipe Swap, someone was looking for Icebox Fruitcake.  I've never had it, but it's an old recipe and apparently quite popular.  Here was the reply from that (other) old thread:

 

woodyend

Registered: ‎02-19-2014

 

12-08-2014 05:25 PM

 

No Bake Fruitcake Made with Pecans and Graham Crackers.

 

1 box graham crackers
1 stick butter
1 cup pecans
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dates
1/2 cup cranberries
1/2 cup shredded coconut, firmly packed
1 jar maraschino cherries (10 oz)
1 tablespoons cherry juice
1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

Melt butter and marshmallows together.

Finely crush graham crackers and coarsely chop nuts and drained cherries.

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.

Pack in greased pan. Let refrigerate 48 hours.

 

--------

 

I'm glad someone revived this old thread -- I've enjoyed reading it.  My grandmother always baked fruit cakes early in the year.  She wrapped them in cheesecloth and soaked them continually in whisky as they mellowed.  I have her recipe, and we always enjoyed her fruitcakes, but once our small family discovered Claxton Fruit Cakes (made here in Georgia) we loved them so well we never baked our own.  They are mostly candied fruit, with just enough batter to hold them together.

 

I don't know if you can still buy dairy Eggnog that whips, but that was what we always used on top of our slices of fruitcake.

 

There are no Trader Joe's or Whole Foods anywhere nearby, but if I'm ever near one I'll look for the fruitcakes someone recommended on this thread.

 

Fun Reading!  Thanks, all.

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,368
Registered: ‎07-17-2011

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?hav

Added Note:

 

I just remembered, at our December Book Club meeting last year, someone read a Christmas Book about a Fruitcake Recipe contest.  One of the winning recipes in that book was an Icebox Fruitcake.  If anyone is curious, I can probably dig out the name of the book.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 20,648
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?hav

I'm one who never liked it - until I met my first Collin Street Bakery fruitcake in 1990.    Nothing else is within a galaxy of how great those are.   

 

I stocked up by buying an extra large one a few years ago.  I sliced them up, vacuum sealed each slice, and keep in the freezer so they stay like new.  I just ate a piece yesterday, from 2014.    Awesome!  Smiley Happy

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Posts: 3,923
Registered: ‎02-20-2016

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?

I've baked fruitcake a number of times. The first challenge is slicing candied fruit (very sticky), and then combining all the ingredients (you have to use your hands).

 

I like being able to add only the candied fruits I prefer.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 69,407
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?


@webbgarner1 wrote:

That reminds me of a cake my mother use to make a christmas, she called it an orange slice cake. But it had nuts, the candied orange slices and some other flavored ones, dates, I do not know what all. And at some point, like the next day, she would pour orange juice on top of it. Like you said it would stay moist and delicous for a long time.

She also made a pie she called a japanese fruit pie. It was basically like a coconut pie with nuts and some dried fruits.decadent.


@webbgarner1. I made the orange slice cake one year.  You had to cut up the candy orange slices.  I got the bright idea to put them in the food processor to save time.  In short order, I had the biggest, sticky orange mess you ever saw.  All the cut edges just stuck together.  I don't remember how I got it sorted out but in the end, it was a delicious cake.  Great for fruit cake haters.

New Mexico☀️Land Of Enchantment
Honored Contributor
Posts: 69,407
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?hav

 

 


@Honeybit wrote:

@Tigriss

 

Several years ago on Recipe Swap, someone was looking for Icebox Fruitcake.  I've never had it, but it's an old recipe and apparently quite popular.  Here was the reply from that (other) old thread:

 

woodyend

Registered: ‎02-19-2014

 

12-08-2014 05:25 PM

 

No Bake Fruitcake Made with Pecans and Graham Crackers.

 

1 box graham crackers
1 stick butter
1 cup pecans
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dates
1/2 cup cranberries
1/2 cup shredded coconut, firmly packed
1 jar maraschino cherries (10 oz)
1 tablespoons cherry juice
1 1/2 cups mini marshmallows

Melt butter and marshmallows together.

Finely crush graham crackers and coarsely chop nuts and drained cherries.

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.

Pack in greased pan. Let refrigerate 48 hours.

 

--------

 

I'm glad someone revived this old thread -- I've enjoyed reading it.  My grandmother always baked fruit cakes early in the year.  She wrapped them in cheesecloth and soaked them continually in whisky as they mellowed.  I have her recipe, and we always enjoyed her fruitcakes, but once our small family discovered Claxton Fruit Cakes (made here in Georgia) we loved them so well we never baked our own.  They are mostly candied fruit, with just enough batter to hold them together.

 

I don't know if you can still buy dairy Eggnog that whips, but that was what we always used on top of our slices of fruitcake.

 

There are no Trader Joe's or Whole Foods anywhere nearby, but if I'm ever near one I'll look for the fruitcakes someone recommended on this thread.

 

Fun Reading!  Thanks, all.



My mother made this refrigerated fruitcake for so many years that it became a family tradition.  Very easy and keeps a long time when kept airtight in the fridge.  We used a lot of candied cherries and pineapple.  Use fruits you like.

New Mexico☀️Land Of Enchantment
Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,348
Registered: ‎06-13-2017

Re: Confess to liking fruitcake - has anyone baked one?

Oh Kachina. I am sure that was a mess. I know you probably were not laughing at the time , but I bet it was a sight. The food processor was a good idea. and  it sounds like you got to eat the cake anyway.

You may be on to something. If you know someone who hates fruitcake and yoiu need to rib them a little, cut them a huge chunk of it. wow !