We 3 gmas baked FRUITCAKES!
Hi all, yesterday we make our fruitcakes, so we would have plenty of time to snocker them up for the Christmas Dinner. We used a great recipe that we tested when Helen and I surprised Barbra on her birthday almost a whole year ago... we made our yearly fruitcakes there with her in October. This year we started a bit earlier and baked together via cyber/text. Admittedly, in person was more fun!!! But these all came out great by anyone's standards I am sure.
We used a combination of pans and our fruits are a bit different... Here are Helen's and then My fruit before mixing.
Barb didn't send a picture of her fruit, but I imagine it looks a lot like mine... with nuts...I left nuts out at my husband's request.
Looking good...now the into the oven shots.
Those oven shots are mine, then Helen's, then Barb's.
We had a good time making these, tasting, and now waiting for the time to reveal them after some "resting" in wait for the holidays.
Helen's all done 
and wrapped.
Barb's baked and ready to wrap.
Barbra tripled the recipe... that is a whole lot of fruit and goodies.
and then mine is all wrapped up... the lead in picture is my round one that is in the can... it weighs 6.75 pounds, single recipe in tube pan with about an inch in a loaf pan for sampling.
... that is a lot of love waiting for Christmas...
By this time next week we will all have "Baking with Julia" in our hot, floury, little hands... I wonder what we will bake?
Happy Holiday Baking!
Helen, Diane, and Barbra (rbo) =)
Comments
Have to admit is does seem early but with overnight temperature dropping last night to 26 degrees (Farenheit, really!) Its fun to be back into our Wednesday sisterly baking. Looking forward to seeing holiday baking on TFL from so many countries and cultures.
Now I'm in the Christmas spirit :)
Where is the recipe? I made some last year and they were pretty disappointing...yours look perfect :)
Hi Jackie, Never too early for that Christmas spirit ! I guess that old saying is true about the only thing that never changes is that nothing remains the same-- This recipe now has a picture of a cake covered in white with silver sparkles....probably would have passed it by. Glad that it was pictureless eleven years ago.
Here is the url for the recipe: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/christmas-cake-2/detail.aspx
The first print out I have is from 2003, then another from 2008. Both are covered in post it notes of amounts and types of fruit, nuts, and flour used for that year. Basically what I do is add up the weight of fruits and nuts in the recipe and then make up my own mixture of what I have on hand and can find at the store. I think it is mostly a pound cake recipe with the fruit and nuts added. I don't use dates anymore, although I like the taste they seem to kind of dominate the taste of the other fruits. The fruits and peels aren't in the stores here yet so I ordered two 32 oz containers of English Fruitcake mix from Amazon. Pleasantly surprised to find them in small dice size and not overly gloppy with sugary syrup. My much more creative (and younger:) sisters make their own candied fruit.
This year's double recipe was really simplfied: basic ingredients plus 680 g raisins, 325 g walnuts, 1814 g fruit and peel mix, 1 cup plum brandy. It yielded a large and a medium sized springform pan and a loaf pan. All filled almost to the top came out to be a total for the three cakes of 12.5 pounds.
When my sisters surprised me with the October visit last year, they brought matching tins for all of us and went to our little kitchen shop to find a vat sized bowl for me to prize. It is so nice to have it to soak the goodies in overnight and then mix the cake mixture the next day in the mixer, then you can just pour the batter over the fruit and you're ready to go.Thank you again my sisters for the great bowl.
This is a very adjustable recipe as you can see. I used to make a separate one for our elder sister who could not abide candied peels, and especially citron. I used candied pineapple, raisins, cherries and pecans for her.
So Jackie, that is probably more than you ever wanted to know about a recipe, but I hope you try it, of course using only the kinds of fruit and nuts that you like. Let us know how it goes,
Happy Baking!
Barbra
cakes getting brandy and or bourbon on then every week, that is what my Granny did. for 10 weeks till Christmas....these cakes should be really snockered by then:-) Just the thought of it makes Lucy swoon and start licking her chops. She prefers snnaps of course especially after that horrible Jagermeiser fruit cake fiasco we don't talk about!
Your variety of fruit cakes look awful good for so early in the Holiday season but, since it snowed 8" in the Dakotas earlier this week for the earliest time in 120 years, It has to be the Holiday season for sure - which might be another reason for Lucy to hit the Jagermeaister again - not that she needs one!
It was close, but we vote for Diane's cake with its mega sizw and glistening qualities that make Lucy drool ....even though it somehow got a hole in the middle of it. :-). I hink it is a great place for some flowers as the centerpiece of the Holiday table. They all have to taste great even without the nuts - which I'm pretty sure is illegal after Thanksgiving in most parts. Well done and
Happy Baking GMA's - a great follow up to your daily breads post.
Thank you Barbra, I will print your post along with the allrecipe recipe. The detail in your post is most appreciated. I think, last year, we err'd by using our on hand rum for the soak - this year I'm going to sport out for a micky of brandy to do it justice!
Jackie
PS I checked out the link and I actually like the almond paste and sparkles :)