Bake this easy dessert, without all the citrus and gooey ingredients, to serve at holiday parties and watch even those who don't like fruitcake reach for seconds.
Nothing says ‘home for the holidays’ like laughter around a warm, crackling fireplace and the delectable aroma from a colorfully laden table of homemade pies, fancy candies, creamy eggnog and a rich, moist fruitcake.
History of Fruitcake
Fruitcake variations have been around since before the Middle Ages. In America, the fruitcake has been a part of holiday tradition since hand-hewn tables graced log cabin kitchens in colonial days. For some families, Christmas would not be Christmas without a fruitcake or two.
Most people either love this ‘sinfully rich’ dessert or they despise it. There are not many in betweens. Those who love fruit cake prepare it with great love and share their recipes from generation to generation. For those who despise it, there is the annual Great Fruitcake Toss held in Manitou Springs, Colorado each January.
Commercial Fruitcake
Well known American bakers such as the Collin Street Bakery in Corsicana, Texas, ship their famous fruitcakes all over the world, including Iceland. Among their clientele who have tasted those luscious cakes are famous people like Joe Don Baker, Ernest Borgnine, and Vanna White. However homemade fruitcakes are usually more economical and have the added ingredient of love.
Homemade Fruitcake
The luxury of a homemade fruitcake is that it can be made at the beginning of the season, thereby reducing the stress of holiday cooking. The beauty of the following recipe is that it’s easy, and doesn’t have all the candied fruits and citrus peels, so that even those who don’t like fruitcake will reach for a second piece. When the pine wreath is hung on the door and brightly colored packages peek beneath the branches of a twinkling Christmas tree, whip up this easy recipe and fill your own kitchen with the aroma of an old-fashioned cake in the oven.
Fruitcake Recipe
Serves approximately 14
Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 1 ¾ cups water
- ¼ cup applesauce
- 3 Tbsp rum flavoring
- 2 pkgs nut bread mix
- 3 cups pecan pieces
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 16 oz jar of maraschino cherries (drained)
- 1 large can of crushed pineapple
Directions:
- Grease and flour an angel food cake pan or Bundt pan. (Cake can also be baked in smaller loaf pans for gift-giving.)
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
- Beat eggs and combine with water, applesauce, and rum flavoring. Stir in remaining ingredients.
- Pour batter into greased, floured pan and bake for 70 to 80 minutes.
- Cool and remove from pan. Decorate the top with pecan and cherry halves.
- Wrap cake in foil and refrigerate.
Optional: Sprinkle cake lightly with rum each week while it is being stored and before serving.
