When most of us think of fruitcake we picture a dense, dark colored, dry loaf of bread packed with dried candied fruits and nuts. History and lore mingle in the telling of the fruitcake story. Many of the earliest recipes date back to ancient Egypt and Rome. Fruitcake also has historical associations with the Holy Land, with its internal bounty being said to represent the Wise Men. Like many other fruit breads and cakes, it has been venerated since Medieval times when fruit in wintertime was an extraordinary treat.
The English fruitcake or Christmas cake reached its heyday in Victorian times when, with the introduction of the Christmas tree and other festive customs and religious traditions exploded into colorful, season-long celebrations. These fruitcakes were made well in advance of the holidays, wrapped in cheesecloth that had been soaked in brandy or rum. Periodically, the cheesecloth was resoaked and the cakes rewrapped to absorb the liquid. The day before Christmas, they were unwrapped, coated with marzipan or almond paste, further coated with royal icing that dried and hardened, then glazed with apricot glaze. These Christmas cakes demonstrated such abundance that over the years, the same kind of cake has been used as wedding cake, as it has the advantage of preserving well for anniversary celebrations. The German Christmas bread called ‘stollen’ is a close kin to fruitcake.
Fruitcake character is largely determined by the wealth of fruit and nuts it contains. Spices are other key ingredients that go back to the Middle Eastern heritage of the fruitcake. Rum and Brandy are very often included in the liquids of the cake which leave their flavor but no alcoholic content because the alcohol is driven off during baking. Any favorite flavor, such as wine, fruit juice or liqueurs can be used. Rather than just adding it to the batter, I prefer to marinate the fruit and nuts in it overnight or longer.
The ‘mail-order’ fruitcakes that became quite popular in America in about 1913, although convenient, probably had a lot to do with our great dislike for this traditional ‘Christmas’ cake. I’m pretty sure this is where the dry part originated. As a kid, it certainly wasn’t my choice for a Christmas treat. I was never one for molasses or raisins and it seemed that was all I could taste. I probably shouldn’t mention this but on occasion my mother would make an unbaked fruitcake. There were very few things she made that I didn’t like but that topped the list. If I recall it contained molasses, marshmallows and I think graham wafer crumbs —- yikes!! Things got a little better when ‘Betty Crocker’ came out with a boxed fruitcake mix that had a white batter.
It seems like its been decades since fruitcakes were the du jour dessert to be served at a wedding. These days, the wedding cake need not be a cake at all. Since about 2003, ‘Cheese (Tower) Cakes’ have grown in popularity as an alternative to the traditional fruitcake. It is made by stacking an assortment of round cheeses to resemble a cake which can be served with fruit and crackers. This will also compliment the wine being served. So much for the tradition of a single female wedding guest putting a bit of wedding cake under her pillow at night so she could dream of the person she would marry!
I’m sure your curious as to why I would dedicate a blog to White Fruit Cake. Some years back, I was co-owner of a catering company. At Christmas we were regularly asked for Christmas fruitcake. After a lot of ‘recipe development’ we settled on a white fruitcake recipe that became a signature product for us. To this day, I very often make a batch in about mid November, baking it in little individual loaves. Even though there is just the two of us I make the whole recipe and we enjoy it early on into the next year.
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White Fruit Cake
A tender, light and delicately flavored fruitcake.
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Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Marinate the first 7 ingredients overnight (I prefer to marinate for at least 24 hrs.) in 1 cup of Rum ( use your own preference as to the type of Rum). Preheat oven to 275 F. Line baking pans with parchment paper.
Cream margarine with sugar. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla & lemon zest.
Combine flour, baking powder & salt. Add gradually to creamed mixture, beating well. Fold in marinated fruit mixture. Carefully divide cake batter into 24 mini loaf pans or 4 - 9 x 5" loaf pans.
Bake for 1 hour for mini loaves & 2 hours for large loaves. Place a pan with 1/2 -inch of water in the bottom of oven while baking; checking periodically that it has not gone dry. If baking fruitcake in large loaves the temperature may be increased to 350 F. for the last 10-15 minutes. I found with the mini loaves it was best to bake them completely at 275 F. When cake tests done, remove from oven & place on cooling racks until thoroughly cooled.
Wrap in Rum soaked cheesecloth & place in a tightly covered plastic container for a least one month before serving. Each week, check to see if you need to add more rum to the cheesecloth.
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Recipe Notes
- Total baked weight of fruit cake is 10 3/4 lbs or 4876 grams.
- Yield equals either 4 - 9 x 5" loaves or 24 mini loaves.
- Just for some extra 'Secrets for Perfect Fruitcake' go to whatscookingamerica.net/Q-A/fruitcakesec.htm
