Fruit Cake!

[Tom Trostel]

:h84 Stopped by Collin Street Bakery, Corsicana, Texas today and bought a regular Apricot Pecan Fruit Cake. Good stuff! Less shopping time if you are going to mail order. Time's a wasting. Tom Trostel :h83

[Christi V.]

I thought all fruitcakes were good for was hockey pucs?? :l31

[Gina D.]

People actually BUY those things?

I thought they quit making them the same ones have been circulating for centuries. Who would ever know?

[Chester Taje]

I wondered who would bring up this subject

[Chester Taje]

Use of fruit cake.

[CarolnJim]

Just ordered 2 of their Yummy Deluxe Fruitcakes. In our opinion, Collin Street Bakery is the best.

[jdtrotter]

Johnny Carson once said that there was only one fruit cake in the world, and it just kept being passed around as a "gift".

:40 :40

Fruit Cake---not as nasty as Okra---but close. :22

Diane

[Suz]

Fruit Cake---not as nasty as Okra---but close. :22

While I agree that fruitcake isn't for everyone, many have made their decisions based on that stuff you get at the store. :22 Collins Street is not like that. IMHO, it's yummy.

[Charlie C]

H Better stop by the Bulk Food store on the way home tonight to pick up about 20 lbs of assorted peel, cherries, candied fruit, walnuts, pecans and almonds :31

[Charlie C]

:h84 :h83

2 1/2 c Dates -- pitted and chopped
2 c Candied Citrus Peel --
: chopped
1 1/2 c Maraschino Cherries --
: drained,chopped
2 c Seeded raisins
2 c Seedless raisins
1 1/2 c Currants
1/2 c Maraschino cherry liquid
1 1/2 c Almonds -- blanched
1/2 c Brandy -- or fruit juice
1 cn Crushed Pineapple In Water
19 0z. - 540 ml
2 c Sugar
1 c Strawberry jam
4 c Flour
1 1/2 ts Baking soda
2 ts Cinnamon
1 ts Salt
1/2 ts Cloves
1/2 ts Allspice
2 c Butter
2 c Sugar
12 ea Eggs
1 Brandy

DAY 1 - In a large bowl, mix together dates, peel,
raisins, currants, almonds and drained
cherries(reserve liquid). Stir in brandy or fruit
juice. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room
temperature overnight. In a saucepan, combine
pineapple and two cups sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce
heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently, 30 -
40 min., or until mixture thickens. There should be
about 2 1/2 c of pineapple misture. Remove from heat,
stir in reserved cherry liquid and jam. Cover and
refrigerate overnight. DAY 2 - Generously grease and
line 6 9x5 inch loaf pans or three standard wedding
cake pans, with waxed paper, aluminum foil or
parchment. Grease lining. In a bowl, combine flour,
baking soda, cinnamon, salt, cloves and allspice. Add
one cup of flour mixture to date mixture and toss to
thoroughly coat fruits. In a large mixing bowl, cream
butter and two cups sugar. Beat in eggs one at a
time, blending well after each addition. Alternately
stir small amounts of flour mixture and pineapple
mixture into butter mixture. Mix fruit into batter
well. Spoon batter into prepared pans. Place a large,
shallow pan of water on bottom rack of oven. Fill
half full with hot water and preheat oven to 275.
Place loaf pans on middle rack and bake 1 1/2 - 2
hours or until a cake tester inserted in the centre
comes out clean. Remove cakes from oven, cool 10 min.
Remove from pans, peel off paper and cool. Wrap
individually in cheesecloth soaked in additional
brandy. Wrap in plastic wrap, then aluminum foil.
Store in a cool place and moisten cheesecloth
occasionally with brandy. Fruitcake can be aged 4-6
weeks then it can be wrapped securley and frozen.

My Variation on this recipie requires that all amounts of fruit be multliplied by 3 (except the canned pineapple and jam) Brandy can be at least doubled and the fruit / brandy mix should sit for at least 3 days and should be turned / mixed daily.


If I remember correctly this recipie was published for many years in the Toronto Star and accredited to Kate Aitken




And a couple of light notes on dry fruitcake from the author of the recipie that has been used in our family for a long time...move forward to minute 1:40 of the broadcast. Also check the tab to see historic notes on plum pudding.

Broadcast from Jan 1 1953

:94 :H82

[Kurt & Ann K.]

There are a few of us that appreciate fruit cake. I'm one of those who loves to eat it and also give it as gifts. I annoint it with rum and brandy throughout the year. Thanks for the reminder, it's time to get started on the 2007 supply.
I suppose if some like okra, some can enjoy fruitcake, some even like escargot, variety is supposed to be the spice of life. That's what makes people interesting and keeps life from being boring.
Enjoy the individuality
Kurt & Ann K.

[jdtrotter]

Opps,

Sure didn't mean to insult any fruitcake lovers---but sounds like I did.

My humble apologies.

[Rand]

John and Diane,

My Grandmother sent the family fruitcakes for over thirty years. I had to endure some boring fruitcakes as a child but the one Grandmom was full of fruit and nuts and tasted great! I looked forward to that fruitcake so much that when she passed a few years back I looked on the old fruitcake tins and found the company's name and address. I ordered a fruitcake and just ordered this years. When I started looking for a fiberglass egg I looked at Scamps, Casita's and Bigfoot but decided to go with a Casita...I took it as a sign...since Corsicana and Collins Street Bakery is right down the road from Rice, Texas!

Randy

[Suz]

Opps,

Sure didn't mean to insult any fruitcake lovers---but sounds like I did.

NO WAY! Diane.

Two types of people grow thick skin early on: Those that admit they like fruitcake and those that admit they like okra!

[Brian B-P]

While there is apparently some truly horrible fruitcake out there, I look look forward to my mother's every year, both because it means she is still with us and up to the task of baking, and because it is great to eat.

The classic unwanted fruitcake jokes can still be hilarious.

[Lacy Harrison]

Here's a little story embeded into my family lore for all you wonderful married men who seek to be wise.

One year on Christmas Eve, my Father, an entrepeneur who lived his life on a dead run, and obviously had not made time to shop until the last minute, came home with a beautifully wrapped gift for my Mother. Next morning, the package revealed a commercially baked fruitcake. Keep in mind here that my Mother was famous for baking her version of the Texas Pecan Cake for the holidays and everyone we knew would have been delighted to be a lucky recipient of one in any given year.

Although everyone was aghast at my Father's effrontry, Mother didn't say a single word about her gift, other than to thank my Father for his thoughtfullness in choosing her gift. Of course, because Mother set the tone in our household, the commerially baked fruit cake was never again mentioned by anyone......until the next Christmas morning. When Dad opened his package, there, carefully nestled in 3 or 4 layers of beautiful tissue paper, was the self same fruitcake he had given Mother the year before. He turned redder than three sheets of beets while we all held our breaths to see what would happen next. He was on the very verge of an explosiion when he started laughing so hard he nearly fell out right there on the floor. Of course we all joined in and had a fine Christmas day indeed.

The fruitcake was never mentioned during the following year and the next gift from my Father opened by my Mother on Christmas morning was not only beautiful but thoughtful as well and from that time on, Mother enjoyed the most wonderful gifts from her husband. The rest of us still caution one another all year long to "Be careful, you might get a fruitcake for Christmas"!

Be Merry and Enjoy all the Fruitcake you can get your hands on!

[Nancy in Oregon]

Okay, you all made me so hungry for great fruit cake that I went to the Collins Street Bakery website and ordered a small one for Xmas.

Nancy

[CarolnJim]

Thanks Lacy for sharing your fruitcake story with us. Your parents showed true love.


and Nancy, You will be glad you ordered one, I hope you enjoy this delicious Christmas treat.

[Chester Taje]

Who started this thread

[Keith Williams]

I wish we had a dancing FRUITCAKE

I love em and I love OKRA too, so there

Anyway, my Dad, miss you POP, used to buy Fruitcakes from a group called FRONTIERS INTERNATIONAL. They were the best Fruitcakes I ever had and I'd love to know who made them.

Does anyone know that bit of info?

In the meantime, I'll try the Collins Street Bakery and see what they are like.

Thanks,

EKW