Fruitcake has many Fans

Oh, yeah, go ahead and laugh at the fruitcake, but take care, because you are having a bit of a joke at the expense of a treat that has sustained travelers and delighted children for a thousand years.


Because of the ongoing social disdain for the fruitcake, there are lots of fruitcake pretenders out there, like wimpy yellow cakes with a few candied cherries. This is not a fruitcake.

Fruitcakes are at the decadent end of the cake family, and they are easy to recognize. First, they are soaked with an alcohol such as rum, whiskey, bourbon, or a flavored liqueur. Second, fruitcakes are dense, moist, heavy concoctions filled with (surprise) fruit and nuts. This is not diet food. One puny ounce usually has about 100 calories.

Third, a fruitcake must be aged for at least four weeks in an airtight container while the cake soaks up its liquor. A fruitcake that is soaked with liquor every four weeks can last for years, according to What's Cooking America by Linda Stradley (Falcon Books).

Legend has it that Queen Victoria waited a year to eat her fruitcake because it demonstrated restraint to her subjects. At least that is what she said.

If you dare to risk a social blacklist, you'll find lovely fruitcake recipes in old cookbooks and online. But here are some tips for great fruitcakes:

* You don't have to use candied fruit. Fresh and dried fruit work well.

* Store your cake in a tin with powdered sugar. Wrap it in liquor-soaked cloth.

* Fruitcakes freeze well, but they won't mellow after you freeze them. Age them first.

* Soak fresh fruit and nuts in liquor overnight. Use the liquid in your cake.

* You can be creative with your fruit choices (as long as the fruits are the weight the recipe calls for).

* To get the fruitcake shine, use a sugar-syrup glaze.