Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (2024)

BY :Bebs | Published: | Updated: | 3 Comments

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5 from 3 votes

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This classic dark fruitcake is dense with glazed fruits and nuts with added dried fruits and dates. Enjoy it freshly baked or aged for some weeks or months.

Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (1)

  • What is Fruitcake?
  • What liqueur to use?
  • How long does it last?
  • Printable Recipe
  • Simple Dark Moist Fruitcake

What is Fruitcake?

It is a cake made with candied and dried fruits and nuts with some spices added. It can be either alcohol-laden or alcohol-free.

In England, it is a tradition to have fruitcake as a wedding cake. The same is true in the US in earlier years. Normally covered in marzipan and then coated in white icing. Another tradition is for the couple to keep the top tier of their wedding fruitcake and save it for the christening of their first-born child. Later on, it also became popular to eat it for the celebration of the first wedding anniversary.

Not only for weddings, but fruitcake is also quite popular as Christmas cake in various countries. It is common to give it as a gift to friends or business associates.

Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (2)

What liqueur to use?

Fruitcake may or may not be boozy. The types of alcohol that are commonly used are rum, brandy, red wine, whiskey orange-flavored liqueur. However, if you have kids or simply prefer the alcohol-free version, you may use fruit juices like apple, orange or cranberry. This is used for soaking the dried fruits to hydrate them and make them plump, or else you will end up with dry fruitcake. The liqueur is also used for brushing or basting them after baking to preserve the cake for a long time. It hinders the growth of molds or yeast.

Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (3)

How do you keep it moist?

Boozy fruitcakes are usually aged for at least a week to several months. They are traditionally wrapped in a cheesecloth soaked with liqueur and sealed in plastic bags or tin containers. You can also just brush the cake with booze and wrap tightly. The cheesecloth should be resoaked in alcohol at regular intervals (weekly or monthly) to keep them moist and, well, boozy. Simply brushed and wrapped ones should be re-brushed more often, like every few days.

To prevent your fruitcake from drying out during the long baking, place a pan with water in the oven. Top it off once in a while. I do this all the time when baking cake and the result is very moist.

Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (4)

How long does it last?

Well, apparently, there are some fruitcakes that are more than a hundred years old. Whether they are still palatable or even edible, is the question.

Alcohol-laden fruitcakes can last for years. The ones without alcohol in it do not keep as well as that of the boozy ones. They should be consumed in a couple of days after baking or up to 6 months if packed tightly and refrigerated. The same is true if fresh fruits are used as they bring in a lot of moisture to the cake that can cause the cake to spoil or for the pathogens to thrive.

Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (5)

Printable Recipe

Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (6)

Print Review

Simple Dark Moist Fruitcake

5 from 3 votes

This classic dark fruitcake is dense with glazed fruits and nuts with added dried fruits and dates. Enjoy it freshly baked or aged for some weeks or months.

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 1 hour hr 20 minutes mins

Course :Dessert, Snack

Servings =24

Print Recipe Rate this Recipe

Ingredients

FRUITS

  • 1.5 cups glazed fruits
  • 1 cup dates chopped
  • 1.5 cups raisins
  • 1 cup dried fruits (like apricots, figs, cranberries, apples, pineapple)
  • 1 cup brandy or rum (SEE NOTE 1)

BATTER

  • 1.5 cups vegetable oil
  • 2 cups brown sugar
  • 5 large eggs
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon powder
  • ½ teaspoon all-spice
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg
  • ¼ cup corn syrup
  • ¼ cup dutch process or dark cocoa powder
  • 4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1.5 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 cup nuts (like cashew, walnuts, pecan or almonds) chopped
  • 1 cup water

TOPPINGS (optional)

  • maraschino cherries
  • whole dates
  • whole pecan or walnut

Instructions

  • Combine all the ingredients for fruits in a non-reactive bowl. Cover and let soak overnight. If you do not have the time to wait, place uncovered in microwave and heat until very hot. Cover and let it cool down and rest for about an hour.

  • Grease and flour pans and set aside (SEE NOTE 2). Preheat oven to 150°C/300°F.

  • In a large mixing bowl, beat brown sugar and oil with an electric mixer until well combined. Add the eggs, one at a time while beating for 20-30 seconds after every addition.

  • Add the salt, cinnamon, all-spice, nutmeg and corn syrup and mix. Add the cocoa powder and mix well. Gradually add the flour, a cup at a time, combining each addition to the mixture well. Add the baking powder and mix again.

  • Slowly pour in water while mixing the batter. Then add the fruits including the liquids, if any, and the nuts. Mix well.

  • Spoon the batter into the prepared pans, filling each up to ¾ full. Decorate the top with maraschino cherries, dates and nuts as desired.

  • Arrange the pans on a baking tray and place it on the middle shelf of the oven bake for 80 minutes to 2 hours depending on the size of the pan. (SEE NOTE 3) Or until an inserted toothpick to the center of the cake come out clean.

  • Remove fruitcake from the oven. While still hot, poke cake with a skewer in several places. Brush or drizzle with rum or brandy.

  • To age or ripen, wrap them in cheesecloths soaked in rum or brandy (mostly damp but not dripping) and place them in a plastic bag or tin box. Let it sit for up at least a month re-brushing with the same liqueur at least once a week to keep them mist. If time is too short then age it for at least a week.

Notes

  • NOTE 1 - Use apple, orange or cranberry juice for non-alcohol version
  • NOTE 2 - This recipe makes 3 loaves of 8x4-inch pan OR 2 loaves of 9x5-inch pan.
  • NOTE 3 - 8x4-inch loaves will take about 75-90 minutes to bake while 9x5-inch about 2 hours.

Nutrition

Calories: 332kcalCarbohydrates: 62gProtein: 5gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 44mgSodium: 134mgPotassium: 245mgFiber: 3gSugar: 33gVitamin A: 75IUVitamin C: 0.9mgCalcium: 70mgIron: 2.2mg

Have you tried this recipe?Mention @foxyfolksy or tag #FoxyFolksyRecipes!

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Comments

    What do you think?

  1. Ronak Mehta says

    Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (19)
    Baked this cake for my birthday and it was an absolute hit! So moist and tasty. Thank you for doing what you do

    Reply

  2. rino says

    Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (20)
    hey. where in Manila can you buy the ingredients like the dried fruits?

    Reply

    • Bebs says

      Hi Rino, we are in Pampanga but for sure you can get most of them (raisins, dates, glazed fruits, cherries) in the many baking supply shops in Manila. The dried mixed fruits (apples, apricots, plums) we bought in S&R but should be also available in other supermarkets..

      Reply

Easy Fruitcake Recipe - Foxy Folksy (2024)

FAQs

What is the best liquor to soak fruitcake in? ›

What alcohol should you use? Strong, flavourful spirits with a high ABV are ideal for feeding fruitcakes. You can use rum, brandy or whisky for spice, or if you like citrus flavours, try an orange liqueur. Cherry brandy and amaretto will also work well if you prefer these.

What ingredient in fruitcake makes it last so long? ›

Sugar and alcohol create a hostile environment for microorganisms. One ingredient that bolsters fruitcake's longevity is alcohol, says Bryan Quoc Le, a food scientist and faculty research fellow at Pacific Lutheran University.

What is the best thing to soak fruit in for Christmas cake? ›

The fruit is soaked in either apple juice OR a combination of apple juice and brandy (for those who like boozy Christmas Cake).

How long should you age fruitcake? ›

The most common duration to properly age a fruitcake is about three months. Any quicker will limit the development of complex flavors attributed to the maturing process. You can certainly age your cake for much longer than several months if you'd like, but we know how busy everyday life can be.

How often do you add rum to fruitcake? ›

To make sure your fruitcake doesn't dry out, unwrap it every few days and brush it with rum, brandy, or a simple sugar syrup.

How do you keep fruit cake moist with alcohol? ›

When cooled, remove cakes from pans and remove parchment paper. Brush cakes generously with sweet sherry, brandy, rum, port, liqueur or fruit juice; do not use wine. Using fruit juice can increase the chances of your fruitcake going mouldy. Wrap each cake in several layers of cheesecloth and then in plastic wrap.

Can you eat 10 year old fruitcake? ›

"In practical terms, this makes most fruitcakes extremely shelf stable, so they would be safe to eat for a long time – a really long time," Chapman says. "But it might taste pretty bad."

Why was fruitcake outlawed? ›

At first, the cakes were mainly filled with nuts. When sugar became more widely available, candied preserved fruits were added. The addition of sugar made the dessert so “sinfully rich” that the church briefly banned fruitcake in the 1700s.

Why is my homemade fruit cake dry? ›

Why is my cake dry? Cakes crumble because they've dried out too much. From years of baking, I know that dry cakes happen for one of two reasons; using too much of your dry ingredients or over-baking your cake.

How do you add moisture to fruitcake? ›

Wrap it in several layers of cheesecloth and saturate the cheesecloth with rum or brandy. Place in a sealed container or zip bag. If the cloth starts to dry out, add more booze. Your fruitcake should be ready to eat in 7–10 days but it will keep for many weeks when properly aged in alcohol.

Why does my fruit cake taste bitter? ›

One of the most common misfortunes among bakers is that they are using too much baking soda or baking powder. Know that too much baking soda or baking powder in cakes will not just lead to a metallic and bitter taste, but it can also make a big mess in the oven as it will rise beyond expectations.

Why is my fruit cake soggy? ›

Adjusting the cooking time and temperature

Everyone's oven is different and you'll get to know the quirks of your own as you use it to bake more and more. If your cake has a soggy middle, the first thing to try is bringing the temperature down a little and baking for slightly longer.

What alcohol is best for fruit cake? ›

Evenly pour 1.5 - 2 ounces of your favorite bourbon, rum, brandy, or cognac, over the fruitcake. For a quick way to measure, use a standard-sized shot glass. Take care to pour slowly, allowing the liquor to absorb into the cake with minimal runoff.

Should homemade fruitcake be refrigerated? ›

For best quality, a fruit cake that is tightly wrapped with aluminum foil or saran warp can be stored for up to 1 month in a cool, dark pantry, 6 months in the refrigerator, and 12 months in a freezer. Check often for signs of spoilage, and if mold or off-odors develop, discard the cake.

What alcohol is best for soaking fruit? ›

The Best Booze Soaked Fruits
  • Bourbon Soaked Cherries. If there's fruit, it counts as health food, right? ...
  • Vodka Soaked Strawberries. Straight from the berry patch of your dreams | Recipe.
  • Champagne Soaked, Frosting Covered Strawberries. ...
  • Frozen, Beer Soaked Watermelon.
Aug 13, 2023

Which alcohol is good for baking cake? ›

For example, rum and bourbon give off nutty and vanilla tasting notes that work well with pie filling, cake mix and cookie dough (much like a vanilla extract). Red wine, port and brandy, on the other hand, add a sweetness that pairs nicely with glazes, chocolate cake and gingerbread.

What kind of rum do you use for fruitcake? ›

Rum: You can use whatever rum you like for this cake (light or dark); I typically use Myers dark rum.

Why add alcohol to fruit cake? ›

Just like wine, preserved fruit also has tannins that are released into the cake, adding complexity. The alcohol also counteracts the sweetness of the candied fruit.

References

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