Fruitcake With Rum
"This is a fantastic mixed fruitcake. I usually start making these in October for Xmas presents. Sometimes I make them in mini pans too. Absolutly delicious and a welcome gift. As they are sitting I add more rum to the soaked cheesecloth about every week to keep them moist. I found this recipe in a Montreal newspaper (The Gazette) and have use it for 20 years now. Time does not include overnight marinating time."
- Ready In:
- 3hrs 45mins
- Ingredients:
- 19
- Yields:
-
2 loaves
- Serves:
- 16-25
ingredients
- 1 1⁄2 cups golden raisins
- 1 1⁄2 cups raisins
- 1 cup dates (chopped)
- 1 cup dried apricot (chopped)
- 1 cup golden fig (chopped)
- 1 cup blanched almond (whole)
- 1 cup pecans
- 1 1⁄2 cups candied citrus peel
- 1 cup candied cherry (halved)
- 1⁄2 cup dark rum
- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup brown sugar (packed)
- 4 eggs
- 2 1⁄4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1⁄2 teaspoon allspice
- 1⁄4 teaspoon ground cloves
directions
- In a large bowl mix the first nine ingredients. Pour rum over and stir. Cover and let sit overnight. Stirring occasionally.
- In a large bowl cream the butter with the brown sugar until fluffy.
- Beat in eggs one at a time beating well after each egg.
- In a medium bowl sift 2 cups of the flour with baking powder,salt, cinnamon, allspice and cloves.
- Add dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and stir well.
- Toss 1/4 cup flour with the rum soaked fruits.
- Pour batter over the fruit mixture and mix really well. Batter will be very thick.
- Spoon into two 9 X 5 loaf pans lined with greased brown paper. Smooth the tops of the batter in the pans. If you wish arrange some candied cherries and almonds on top of batter.
- Place pans in middle of the oven which has been preheated to 275°F Also place a shallow pan of water on the bottom rack. Bake for 3 to 3 1/2 hours or until toothpick comes out clean. Place loaves in pan on rack for 15 minutes to cool completely. Remove paper or foil and wrap in rum soaked cheesecloth and wrap in foil. Store in cool, dry place for several weeks.
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Reviews
-
I can’t believe there are still no reviews for this recipe! I’ve made this for the last 2 Christmases and it is WONDERFUL! The first year, I tested it out on my husband and parents and they were obsessed. The second year, I baked in mini pans and gave out as gifts. Both times, I covered in rum-soaked cheesecloth. It’s a little too strong for me this way, but my family loves it. Plus the rum makes me feel better about making it so far ahead — typically 2 months before Christmas. I don’t freeze it, I just keep it on the counter in a container, with each one wrapped in cheesecloth. I check them once a week to see if they’ve dried out. If they do, I re-soak. I don’t remember how I adjusted the time for mini loaves, but I do remember it being pretty intuitive (if you bake a lot, this should be true). If you don’t do a ton of baking, cut the bake to 1 hour and check it. If it’s not done, keep checking every 10 minutes (a toothpick should come out clean). It is labor-intensive, due to all the chopped fruits and nuts. And I make my own candied cherries and citrus, which adds to the work. But besides that, it’s a pretty no-fail recipe. I’m a lazy baker (every bake is a one-bowl bake if you only use one bowl, come at me professional bakers) but each batch came out flawless.
