Christmas Special Fruitcake Recipes

CHRISTMAS FRUITCAKE

Steps:

• Soak cherries, mango, cranberries, currants, and citron in 1/4 cup rum for at least 24 hours. Cover tightly, and store at room temperature.
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Butter a 6x3-inch round pan or loaf pan and line it with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in egg. Whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon; mix into butter and sugar in three batches, alternating with molasses and milk. Stir in soaked fruit and chopped nuts. Scrape batter into prepared pan.
• Bake in preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then sprinkle with 2 tablespoons rum.
• Cut out one piece parchment paper and one piece cheesecloth, each large enough to wrap around the cake. Moisten cheesecloth with 1 tablespoon rum. Arrange cheesecloth on top of parchment paper, and unmold cake onto it. Sprinkle top and sides of cake with remaining rum. Wrap the cheesecloth closely to the surface of the cake, then wrap with paper. Place in an airtight tin, and age for at least 10 weeks. If storing longer, douse with additional rum for every 10 weeks of storage.

HOLIDAY FRUITCAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300°. Combine fruit and nuts. In another bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Pour over fruit and nuts; stir to coat. , Transfer to a greased and floured 10-in. tube pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 2 hours. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Wrap tightly and store in a cool place. Bring to room temperature before serving; slice with a serrated knife.

RICH BRANDY CHRISTMAS FRUITCAKE

Steps:

• The night before you cook this place all the fruit fruit peel and nuts into a bowl and soak for 12 hours in the brandy and orange juice; Stir every time you go into the kitchen!
• pre-heat oven to 275ºF/140ºC.
• Grease and line with greaseproof paper an 8 inch/20cm round cake tin.
• Sift the flour salt and spices into a large mixing bowl.
• In a separate bowl cream the butter and sugar together until the mixtures fluffy.
• Beat the eggs and add them a little at a time.
• Fold in the flour and spices.
• Stir in the fruit that has been soaking along with any excess liquid.
• Mix in the treacle.
• Spoon into the cake tin and spread out evenly.
• Cover the cake with a double square of greaseproof paper with a small hole in the top.
• Bake the cake on the lower shelf for 4& 1/4- 3/4 hours.
• When the cake is cold wrap in double greaseproof paper and store in an airtight tin.
• Feed the cake every two days for the first 2 weeks with a spoonful of brandy and/or orange juice and/or glacè cherry syrup.
• First poke little holes in the cake with a knitting needle or a skewer.
• Come Christmas you will have a very very rich fruit cake.
• Use royal icing to ice it or almond paste and royal icing, I don't like almond paste!

CHRISTMAS SPECIAL FRUITCAKE

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, combine nuts, dates and cherries.
• In another bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt; stir into nut mixture until nuts and fruit are well coated.
• Beat eggs until foamy; stir in vanilla.
• Fold into nut mixture and mix well. Pour into a greased and waxed paper lined 9 inch by 5 inch by 3 inch loaf pan.
• Bake at 300°F for 1 hour and 45 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes; remove from pan to a wire rack. Yield: 24 servings. Cake will get softer overnight.
• Country Cooking.

CHRISTMAS DRIED FRUITCAKE

Steps:

• Dust the fruit with the 1 Tablespoon of flour to make it easier to combine with the cake batter.
• Cream the butter/margarine with the sugar until light and lemon colored.
• Add the eggs and beat until thick.
• Sift in the flour, baking powder and salt.
• Mix into batter, and then stir in the orange peel and the dried fruit.
• Turn into a well-greased loaf pan (5"x9").
• Bake in 350-degree oven for 50-60 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.

CHRISTMAS SPECIAL FRUITCAKE

Steps:

• In a mixing bowl, combine nuts, dates and cherries. In another bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt add to nut mixture, stirring until nuts and fruit are well-coated. Beat eggs until foamy. Stir in vanilla fold into nut mixture. Mix well. Pour into a greased and waxed paper-lined 9-in. x 5-in. x 3-in. loaf pan. Bake at 300° for 1 hour and 45 minutes. Cool 10 minutes in pan before removing to a wire rack.© Copyright Reiman Publications, 1993-1997