I love fruitcake! I know fruitcake served during the holidays gets a bad rap and a lot of fruitcakes – especially store bought – are just gross! But this fruitcake isn’t like that! This one is good… like really good!
This dark fruitcake tastes like gingerbread speckled with fruit. I love the citrus and cherries in with the warming spices of the cake. It’s so yummy and never lasts long on the holiday baking platter!
I have been enjoying this fruitcake since a child, for over 40 years now and it’s one of my favorites during the holidays. My mom got it from her Purity Cookbook and started to make it one Christmas when we lived in the city…and every Christmas after that! It’s a great cookbook complete with pictures and step-by-step directions for lots of recipes.
This type of cake has traditionally been served at weddings as the cake that gets passed around to guests. It’s cut in really small rectangles and wrapped in foil, a doily and ribbon. I have been to weddings where this particular was the cake served (because my mom shared the recipe with them), but the walnuts and cherries were left whole whereas I like chopping the cherries and I no longer add nuts to my fruitcakes. We have adjusted the recipe over the years as the original recipe was in pounds and we have it in cups which makes it so much easier!
Let’s get started!
First, we need to combine all of the fruit together. We are using raisins, currants, dates, red glacé and green glacé cherries, mixed peel and walnuts if you like.
Pour brandy over top and stir well. Cover. Let it sit overnight.
It’s the next day, so let’s make the cake! Cream butter and sugar together. I add half the sugar at a time because it’s easier when mixing by hand.
Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
Add vanilla and stir well.
Combine flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and allspice. Stir. Dredge fruit in flour. Mix apple juice and molasses together.
Add flour to butter mixture alternately with the apple juice mixture, beginning and ending with flour.
Add fruit mixture and stir well.
Be sure to mix well.
Pour into a lightly greased loaf pan, mini loaf pan or 9×13” pan. I like using a 9×13” pan. We used a mini loaf pan and poured the remaining batter into a 9×13” pan. This makes a lot of fruit cake!
Place in oven with a pan of water. This will help to keep the fruitcake moist. Bake at 275F for 3 hours or until toothpick comes out clean.
Let cool completely on a cooling rack before slicing and freezing.
Dark Christmas Fruitcake
Combine and let stand overnight:
2 cups raisins
1 cup currants
1 cup finely chopped dates
1 cup halved or quartered red glace cherries
1 cup halved or quartered green glace cherries
1/2 cup mixed peel
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts – optional
1/2 cup brandy
The next day, dredge fruit in 1/2 cup flour.
For the cake:
1 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
6 eggs
1/2 cup molasses
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp allspice
3/4 cup apple juice
Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add vanilla and molasses. Stir well.
Combine flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves and allspice. Add flour to butter mixture alternately with the apple juice, ending with flour. Add fruit mixture and stir well.
Pour into a lightly greased loaf pan, mini loaf pan or 9×13” pan. I like using a 9×13” pan. Place in oven with a pan of water. Bake at 275F for 3 hours or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool completely before slicing and freezing.
enjoy from Our City Homestead to yours