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Happy National Fruitcake Day!

I remember my mother making these. She would then soak cheesecloth in whiskey and wrap them up. Six weeks later, we had a special night of inviting friends and family over to have slice or two...

Any other fruitcake lovers here?

thinktwice 8 Dec 27
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17 comments

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0

NOT a fan of fruit cake. There was always plenty of other goodies to eat in place of fruit cake.

I agree..

0

Ugh.....waaaaaaay too sweet for me!

I agree! Some are very sweet! But a normal slice of fruitcake is about 100 calories, so it is not as bad as some other sweets...plus, the alcohol takes out some of the sweetness...or maybe it just makes it so you don't care...ha ha ha

@thinktwice I am not much of a sweet eater of anything, & this is just too much, booze or not.

0

Good stuff! Seems like the one pastry the Germans can't do well. Stollen is like an entire loaf of bread was sprinkled with dried fruit before being jammed into a toaster, and glazed. Gotta have that 1000 calorie/slice American stuff!

I remember christstollen! Our cook in Germany used to make them...I don't remember much except the smell of cinnamon...

0

I have never tasted fruitcake. It has a terrible reputation as heavy, high calorie and dense and tastes bad.

Seven Reasons Why You Should Never Eat fruitcake

  1. The "fruit" is a mystery.
  2. It's a total waste of calories.
  3. Even booze can't save it.
  4. It's a glorified brick.
  5. A loaf lasts way too long.
  6. Fruitcake isn't taken seriously anymore.
  7. It's best use us fruitcake tosses, as in catapults.

[delish.com]

Fruitcake: Why it Taste So Bad

[huffpost.com]

And like most reputations, undeserved...I have tried several from all sorts of bakeries and have found most of them to be fine and a few to be outstanding...it might be one of those foods that you either love or hate...ha ha ha

0

Mmmm, warm fruitcake with cream cheese

I never heard of that, but anything with cream cheese is a winner!

1

I've never actually had it. It has a reputation for being horrible, but that could very well be undeserved. I don't like walnuts, but if it doesn't have them, I'd try it.

They do make them with pecans as well, I think...and sometimes black walnuts, which are super rich and tasty...I recently saw an apricot fruitcake as well...had a taste...it was delicious!

@thinktwice Apricots and pecans actually sounds really good! I'd try that for sure!

@carlyhorton ---it is yummy..I have two friends who want this each year...

1

I love fruitcake....that looks marvellous!

lol it is stock photo sent to me by a fruitcake company I buy gifts from...the kind I remember was a dark, rich cake that almost looked chocolate...

@thinktwice Here was me thinking that was all your own work too! ?. I used to make a pretty good rich, dark fruitcake myself at Xmas. I iced it with almond icing and white Royal icing.....then peaked it all over to make it look like a snow scene and had little elves and Santa figures on top.....my boys loved it. They only ate the marzipan and frosting and my husband and I ate the fruitcake. It had Guinness (which I steeped the dried fruit in overnight prior to baking) and then when it was baked and still warm I skewered the cake all over and drizzled brandy over it. It was then left in a sealed tin for around four weeks prior to being iced for Xmas. Now I’m more conscious of my health I no longer eat such rich food! Still would love a slice though!

@thinktwice This picture looks like walnuts and Jujubes held together with some caramel. I don't know where the cake part is, lol.

@carlyhorton I am told this type of fruitcake is judged by how little cake batter it has...all that candied fruit and nut holds it together, I suppose! ha

2

Ahh, Fruitcake Day memories. I vividly remember, as a boy growing up in Western NY, my grandpa taking me out early on Winter mornings and going deep into the woods to stalk and shoot our own wild fruitcakes. We would then bring them back home for grandma to bake and serve fresh from the oven with a cup of hot cocoa and a shot of insulin.

1

Absolutely. I start on Halloween by soaking the fruits and nuts for a week in whisky. After the cakes are baked they are wrapped in cheesecloth soaked with whisky -- and each week heading into the holidays the cloths are removed and resoaked in the whisky. If you don't get tipsy from the fumes, there isn't enough booze. Even friends who say they hate fruitcake like mine.

I remember the house smelling of whiskey, which in my Baptist house, was a no-no...but it was fruitcake...ha ha ha

0

Join us on Jan 26 for the annual Manitou Springs Fruitcake Toss!
[visitcos.com]

The fruitcakes will fly once again in downtown Manitou Springs! Join in for some old-fashioned tossing of those maybe not so beloved holiday desserts. There will also be a fruitcake costume competition, libations and a fruitcake bake-off!

Non-perishable food item suggested for donation to go to the local food bank. Cakes are available for rent for $1 per cake.

I have heard of this event! So many funny stories of fruitcakes that have been re-gifted around the world...ha ha...sounds like a good time for all!

0

Lover as in having a slice? Heck yes !! ?

well, of course you can also love a person who is a fruitcake...lol...your choice...

0

They will give a holiday to just about anything .

Of course! It is all about marketing! ha ha Which is why I put it under sill, random fun...always fun to have a nonsensical holiday...it is the American way...ha ha Of course, I got an email from a fruitcake company I purchase holiday gifts from...they are obviously trying to extend the "season"...

@thinktwice that is very true. I wonder if there is national thong day.

@freedom41 July 5th...don't eat the fruitcake so you can wear your thong with pride by then! ha ha ha

@thinktwice Are you serious that July 5th is national thong day. I just made that up for laughs.

@freedom41 Like we said...there is a holiday for everything...ha ha ha

I have pics from last year... 😉

[whatnationaldayisit.com]

@thinktwice Thanks for the link. I will have to drop sixty pounds or so to pull off an thong at the beach.

1

I haven't had any in years, I like it, but I shouldn't eat it, so I never buy it. It would be nice if somebody offered me a slice.

2

I like fruitcake. Just had some a few minutes ago.

ugly Level 7 Dec 27, 2018
1

I find it to be so odd that so many people dislike fruitcake, and a lot of them haven't even ever had it, or they had it but they were young. I think a lot of them fail to realize your taste buds change over time. I love fruitcakes, always have even though my buds have changed, and I don't see that stopping anytime soon. I even eat the store-bought kind if I'm feeling particularly cheap.

I'm one of those people who have never tried it. I've never seen one fresh or homemade. I'd be tempted to give it a try!

@carlyhorton Not trying it is fine, as long as you don't go around saying it's absolutely disgusting even though you haven't. 😛 But given you are tempted, my guess is you wouldn't do such a silly thing! I think you'd probably like it, although I recommend non-store-bought first. The ones described here sound super good, if you're into rum/whiskey-laden cakes. Also, love Jamestown, miss getting out there (I'm originally from a suburb of Erie, PA, one that's closer to NY).

@PolyWolf I don't think I've ever been offered it. I've seen it around, but really just the store bought kind and it didn't look appetizing. I love to watch The Great British Baking Show, and at the end of each season, the chef hosts make an episode called "Master Class" where they make some of the things they've had the contestants try to make. One of them was a fruitcake, I think. They've done a few different things that are fruitcake-ish. Host Mary Berry made a "Christmas cake" that was pretty much a fruitcake. Paul Hollywood made something that was more bread-like and braided (I think) that was fruitcakey. I think the Brits use candied fruits and nuts in a lot of things around Christmas. I'd try those.

And no, I don't hate on the fruitcake 🙂 I can't bash something I know nothing about. 🙂

@PolyWolf Next time you're in the area (visiting relatives or whatnot), you should come to Jamestown and check out the new National Comedy Center! [comedycenter.org]

@carlyhorton I definitely will. I'd more likely go to Jamestown just for that, and avoid my relatives, all of whom are Trumpeters.

@PolyWolf I remember in 2016 during the campaign season, driving to Erie and back to go shopping and seeing Trump signs everywhere. Including a super GIGANTIC one right on I-90.

1

A really good fruitcake is one of life's greatest pleasures!

Jnei Level 8 Dec 27, 2018
1

I have always loved fruit cake. Most of my family, with the exception of my mother did not. It was usually just me and mom eating the fruit cake while everyone else sat there and made faces at us cuz "that stuff is so gross" according to them. LOL

My mother's did not have that nasty bitter citron stuff...it was a dark fruitcake and everybody loved it...I have her recipe but have not made it...it is above my skill level, I fear...maybe someday one of the grand kids will make it...

@thinktwice oh yes, I agree. The darker fruitcake is much better tasting. It is a chore to make it from scratch. I did it once with my mom, talk about work!! I never cut up so much dried fruit and cracked open so many nuts in my life before, and mom didn't use the citron either!!!

@Redheadedgammy I priced all the ingredients once and was floored! The nuts and dried fruits were pricey but what memories we all have still after all these years...so worth it...maybe I will give it a shot when I retire! ha ha Thanks for sharing your lovely memory as well....

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