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Fruitcake Gets a Bad Rap
Written By: A.J. Stewart | Issue: 2018/12 - December
Fruitcake gets a bad rap.
It’s dry and gross – at least, it can be. The fruitcake has a long history in almost every culture, but only recently has it become ubiquitously hated. The rise of commercialism is partly at fault for that. The mass production of fruitcake resulted in a dry, unappealing brick. But real, homemade fruitcake is as delicious as it is traditional.
The history of the fruitcake began in the Middle Ages in Europe. The fruitcake is unlike any other cake because it is intended to keep for a very long time. It can be made anywhere from a month to a year in advance. It is very dense, loaded with sugar, and often soaked in alcohol. It is usually made with fruit that has already been preserved, like raisins and candied cherries, nuts, spices and honey.
Every culture has their own spin on this holiday staple. Here on the Plateau and the surrounding area, our heritage is primarily Scottish. Scottish fruitcake, called a Dundee Cake, isn’t quite as dense as English Fruitcake. It’s soaked in whiskey and contains almonds in lieu of cherries, which makes for a welcome alternative to the fruitcake we all know and hate. This Dundee Cake recipe (courtesy of vagabondbaker.com) is sans alcohol and more family friendly.
*Remember: this is a traditional Scottish recipe, so the units are
in metric.
175g Salted Butter
175g Powdered Sugar
4 TBSP Orange Marmalade
Zest of 1 Orange
3 Eggs, beaten
225g Plain Flour
400g Golden Raisins
30g Ground Almonds
50g whole Blanched Almonds
Cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Slowly add eggs. Add a little flour to prevent batter curdling. Mix in marmalade and zest. Sift flour into the batter, then add ground almonds and mix well. Stir in the raisins, distribute evenly. Pour into 20cm-round deep cake tin lined with baking parchment. Make rings around the cake with blanched almonds. Bake at 300°F for one hour, 45 minutes; until cake tester comes out cleanly. If it’s browning too much, cover with foil. Cake will crack if the oven is too hot. Cool for 10 minutes, then remove and cool completely on a wire rack.
