All About The Christmas Fruitcake (Love it or Hate it)

October 2, 2022
, FOOD

Only a few things can bring people together, as much as the Christmas fruitcake. In this post, we’ll discuss everything from history to recipes so that you can decide for yourself: do you like the taste of Christmas fruitcake?

The Origin of the Fruitcake

The fruitcake is a holiday tradition in many countries, including the United States and Great Britain. The history of the fruitcake can be traced back to ancient times when it was believed that spices could preserve food for long periods.

Fruitcakes are traditionally made with candied fruits, nuts, and various other ingredients, including alcohol (usually brandy or rum) which can also help prevent spoiling.

Fruitcakes were initially made in the fall, so they would have time to dry out before winter came along and preserved until Christmas or another celebratory occasion when they would be served again.

image: mycountrytable.com/white-fruitcake/

Fruitcakes are produced in the UK in a variety of flavours, from the very light to the rich and luscious.

A spherical fruitcake coated in marzipan and then white royal icing or fondant frosting is the standard Christmas dessert. They are frequently further embellished with snow landscapes, genuine or fake holly branches and berries, or miniature ornamental robins or snowmen. This style of cake is also frequently offered as part of the dessert course at weddings.

It’s frequently served with cheese in Yorkshire. The Genoa cake is an example of this kind of fruitcake. Fruitcakes in the UK frequently include currants and glace cherries. The Dundee Cake, a kind of fruitcake with Scottish roots, gets its name from Keiller’s marmalade.

United States

Fruit and nuts are plentiful in typical American fruitcakes.

American fruitcake mail orders first appeared in 1913. The Claxton Bakery in Claxton, Georgia, and Collin Street Bakery in Corsicana, Texas, are two well-known fruitcake bakeries in the United States. The phrase “nutty as a fruitcake” was coined in 1935 to describe two Southern manufacturers, Collin Street and Claxton. Charities sometimes sell commercial fruitcakes from catalogues as a means of raising money.

The majority of fruitcakes sold in bulk quantities in America are alcohol-free, but those made from traditional recipes are soaked in liqueurs or brandy and dusted with powdered sugar, both of which inhibit the growth of mold. Fruitcakes can be stored in brandy (or wine)-soaked linens, and some people believe that fruitcakes enhance with brandy.

Bulgaria

The typical fruitcake is called keks in Bulgaria, where it is baked at home and enjoyed all year long. Keks recipes can be found in a variety of forms, but they often include flour, butter and/or cooking oil, milk, yeast, yoghurt, eggs, chocolate, walnuts, and raisins. Typically, it is cooked in Bundt-style pans.

Easter fruitcake known as kozunak is another variety that is created with particularity.

Germany

Typically, fruitcake-like baked items in Germany are referred to as sweet breads rather than cakes.

Stollen is fashioned like a loaf and is frequently dusted with icing sugar. Yeast, butter, water, and flour are typically used in its preparation, along with raisins, almonds, candied citrus peel, and citrus zest.

Italy

A chewy, rich Tuscan fruitcake with a history stretching back to Siena in the 13th century, panettone panforte. Panforte is a shallow-baked bread that has a strong spice taste. Its name means “strong bread.” Pandolce is the name of a lower, denser, but still crumbly form of fruitcake from Genoa (“sweet bread”).

Panettone is a Milanese sweet bread loaf that is popular in Italy and many other nations and eaten around Christmas. It is often packed with dried and candied fruits and has a bread loaf consistency similar to Irish barm brack.

The Best Holiday Fruitcake Recipes

The first step to making a fruitcake is finding a recipe you like. There are various fruitcake flavors, each with different ingredients and baking durations.

Ensure you have all the ingredients listed in your chosen recipe—it’s too late to run to the store halfway through.

Next, consider how long it will take you to make the cake before beginning. According to your skill level and time commitment, this can be lengthy as a whole afternoon project.

If you’re unsure of yourself or don’t have much time on your hands, consider starting early so that nothing interferes with your plans.

Find someplace else safe where no one will eat it before Christmas day arrives–like maybe under someone’s bed at night when everyone else has gone home…just kidding)

image: pinterest.ca/pin/530439662354716252/

Christmas Fruit Cake – A Southern Tradition

Love or hate it; fruitcake is a Southern tradition, a holiday staple in the South, and a Christmas tradition that has been around for ages.

Every year on December 25th, people exchange fruitcakes as gifts or serve them as desserts at their parties.

In addition to being delicious, this scrumptious treat also has many health benefits, such as being high in potassium and low in calories.

This makes it an excellent choice for anyone looking to lose weight while keeping up with their daily nutrient intake requirements.

image: clickamericana.com/recipes/dessert-recipes/southern-fruit-cake-recipe-1921

If you Love Fruitcakes, Celebrate It

Fruitcake is usually not eaten until Christmas Eve, and some people will even keep their fruitcakes in storage, waiting for that magical day when they finally get to dig into the festive treat.

Some people don’t like fruitcake because they think it tastes weird, but this isn’t always true, as many recipes are available that make them much more appealing.

Some even add alcohol or scented oils to give them an extra kick and make them taste better than ever, so if you want something different, try making your own at home using this method.

image: eatsmarter.com/recipes/fruitcake-covered-in-marzipan-and-chocolate

Life Span

Fruitcake may be kept for a long time if it contains a lot of alcohol. For instance, a family in Tecumseh, Michigan has preserved a fruitcake from 1878 as an heirloom; as of 2019, the baker’s great-great-granddaughter is the cake’s caretaker. One way to increase the shelf life of the cake is to wrap it in linen that has been soaked in alcohol before keeping.

The Antarctic Heritage Trust uncovered a 106-year-old fruitcake in 2017, and it was said to be in “great shape” and “nearly” edible.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Christmas fruitcake is a classic dessert that has been around for generations, and it’s made with much love and care. If you like it or want to try some new recipes, we hope this article helps.