recipe reviews for:

Christmas Fruitcake

“It's a shame that fruitcake as a species gets such a bad rap. With its two key ingredients - rum and butter - it ought to be a hit. This recipe includes dried fruit, instead of the glowing, candied stuff we've all learned to associate with fruitcake, and is less dense and more cake-like than many fruitcake recipes. It has become a favorite of my friends and family around the holidays (even the skeptical ones), and is delicious by itself, or covered with a layer of almond paste. Fruitcake is also traditional for wedding cake in England, and makes a very rich, sophisticated dessert for luncheons or teas.”

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Reviewed: Nov. 9, 2008

Okay, so far I've only sneaked one bite, but I can already say that this cake is divine! I made it today after soaking the fruit for only 15 hours. I think 15 hours was just fine, as all of the alcohol had been absorbed. Also, I used Grand Marnier to soak the fruit in, simply b/c I had forgotten to buy dark rum. I quadrupled the recipe and used a variety of pans and dishes - from a small loaf pan to a few ramekins. Baking time varied from about 40mins for the smaller ramekins to 1 hour for the loaf pan. I still need to get the rum, so the cakes are waiting until tomorrow, when I'll sprinkle on the rum and wrap in cheesecloth and parchment. I can say that I won't be ageing the cakes for 10 weeks as called for in the recipe, but I am definitely planning on ageing them for a few weeks until I ice them and send them to friends and family as gifts. I'll post an update then. But I can already say this cake is superb!

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4 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Diana Moutsopoulos

	Cooking Level: Expert Home Town: Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA Living In: London, Greater London, England, U.K.
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Reviewed: Oct. 14, 2008

My favorite fruit cake recipe!!! Very good!!

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0 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

can76

	Cooking Level: Intermediate
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Reviewed: Feb. 4, 2008

My family loved this recipe. We had planned to let it sit the customary week or longer but it didn't even last an hour. It was great but I would double or maybe triple it next time.

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1 user found this review helpful

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Sherri

	Cooking Level: Expert Living In: Petal, Mississippi, USA
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Reviewed: Dec. 26, 2007

I cannot fairly rate this because I used way too much rum. I think if I would have only used the 1/4 cup that was called for, it would have been great. I also used heaping measurements of the fruit and nuts. This is a good recipe for DARK fruitcake.

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1 user found this review helpful

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cassarugh

	Home Town: Florence, Alabama, USA Living In: Corvallis, Oregon, USA
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Reviewed: Dec. 22, 2007

This is a really good fruitcake recipe using some more exotic fruits. I doubled the recipe though to make a good sized family cake, and yes, it is just like my English wedding cake. Just a little tip though, if you are going to ice this cake and want a nice flat top, make a dip in the middle of the mixture as you put it in the tin. Then it will rise to a level instead of having a hump on the top.

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1 user found this review helpful

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slashignore

	Cooking Level: Expert
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Reviewed: Nov. 22, 2005

I doubled the recipe to make a 9.5X3 round. I used whetver fruit I had on hand(walnuts,cranberries,raisins,currants and golden raisins). I did not think mango would quite go with cake. I soaked the fruit in Apricot flavoured brandy instead of rum for 3 days and used 4 cups of that (doubled the original recipe). Did not have molasses on hand so substituted honey. Next time I am going to try adding some treacle as well for the color and deep flavor. I made this cake for my mom-in-law's birthday. Topped it with lightly sweetened whipped cream which was a nice contrast to the dense cake and garnished it with orange slices. Everybody LOVED it. The cake turned out to be rich,moist and delicious. This recipe is a keeper.

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6 users found this review helpful

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Talking Head

	Cooking Level: Expert Home Town: Nasik, Maharashtra, India Living In: Sterling, Virginia, USA
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Reviewed: Dec. 6, 2003

This cake is wonderful. It is everything it was promised to be.

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9 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

Syd

	Cooking Level: Intermediate Home Town: Port Arthur, Texas, USA Living In: Seattle, Washington, USA
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Reviewed: Dec. 6, 2003

I loved this recipe. I made it several years ago to give as gift. I made then in mini loaf pans and gave them out. Everyone ranted about of moist they were. The cakes were so good that when I lost teh recipe I came back here looking for it a full 2 years later. Great Job!

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15 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

SMILEYCATT


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Reviewed: Dec. 5, 2003

I made this fruitcake twice because I made a major mistake the first time, inadvertently using all of the rum in the batter rather than half. The second time I used the correct amount of rum, and cut the butter from 8 tablespoons to 2 tablespoons and cut both the molasses and milk in half. I also added 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder. The cakes rose nicely and weren't nearly as greasy as the first time.

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2 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

SMHAM


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Reviewed: Nov. 7, 2003

This Christmas cake is absolutely wonderful. I've made several, have substituted the mango with Papaya, raisins, etc. and it still turns out perfect. This is the best all around fruit cake I have ever made.

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25 users found this review helpful

Reviewer:

AVA SCHNODGRASS


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