Although Dave Barry is convinced there's only one fruitcake, and it gets passed on to someone else each year, I make some each year from a very easy recipe I got when I was living in Norway during my madcap college years, posted below.

The last time I made it, it occurred to me it's a lot like the Logan bread I make for snacking on instead of buying energy bars. Lots of fruit and nuts. I've taken a slab of the fruitcake on the last several snowshoe trips, and it was pleasantly satisfying. So if you ended up with the fruitcake this year, try actually eating it on the trail for a great energy boost.

This recipe is quick (less than 48 ingredients!), easy (no chopping!), and makes 2 loaves packed with fruit and nuts and only 1/2 C of flour per loaf.

Easy Fruitcake
Combine in the order given:
1 C flour
3/4 C sugar
1 ts baking powder
3 eggs
1 ts vanilla
1 pound pitted dates
8 oz container candied cherries
1 pound walnuts or pecans

Press firmly into 2 oiled 8X5 bread pans. If you line the bottoms of the pans with waxed paper the loaves come out easier. Bake at 300 F for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Let cool in pans, then turn out and wrap in foil. No waiting! Eat any time!

WHAT!?

I'm not the only one in the world who enjoys eating fruitcake?

Thanks for the recipe, Kathleen

We ate ours :-D Yum!!!!

Husband's Grandma makes it in mini cupcake pans and ships us a tin every year. Woo-woo!

For Kathleen,

Another fruit cake fan here. Your comment on Logan bread was interesting. My original recipe was rather spartan and utilitarian in the emergency rations sense, but over the years I have tinkered and modified it to the point that my Logan bread, like yours, closer to a fruit cake. Everything but the liquor and just packed full of fruit, nuts, and candied peel. I now use eggs in the recipe for some protein. It keeps forever or at least a hell of a long time, and it's actually good for you. Certainly it does not require comprehensive baking skills either.

Cheers

My question is.

Why do so many people not like fruit cake? It is the best!! but YMMV

I've met a few of those in my time ; )

well as much as I hate to admit it I enjoy fruitcake as well. my sister gets a beautiful (and huge) homemade fruitcake from friend Mae and sis gives me some every year

it's gone

Duane - I've altered the original Logan bar recipe, too, and have packed in more fruit and nuts and less liquid to begin with so it doesn't need so much baking and drying time. I haven't tried adding eggs, however. That might be next! That's the fun part about recipes... once the concept is understood, in this case fruit, nuts, and seeds and some way to bind it all together, the sky's the limit for tweaking for personal taste.

From what I've read, the people who came up with the original recipe were looking for a way to pack in the calories. To me it seems they missed the concept of calories, because there is very little fat in the recipe, and that's where the calories are most dense (9 calories per whatever instead of 4 calories per whatever in carbs and protein). That's ok with me, though, because the Logan bread is still a good idea and my substitute for energy bars. Not to mention it led me to promoting my fruitcake to trail food!

Edited by rosierabbit on 01/15/2008 08:56:41 MST.

One use for Fruitcake:

Ingredients:
One Fruitcake
One quart Rum Raisin Ice Cream
Bottle of Amaretto
Maraschino Cherries
Fresh Mint

Preparation:
Warm Fruitcake in oven to soften. Place in large bowl and break into crumbly mass.

Soften Ice Cream and thoroughly mix into Fruitcake crumbs.

Line bread pan with waxed paper and fill with Ice Cream/Fruitcake mixture. Press firmly to compact mixture.
Place in freezer until ready to serve.

Serving:
Place Fruitcake/Ice Cream "loaf" on cutting board and slice into individual servings.
Place slice on dessert plate and drizzle with Amaretto.
Garnish with Cherry and Mint Leaf.

Enjoy.

oooh that sounds devilishly yummy