(Not Your Usual) Holiday Fruitcake

Fruitcake gets a bad rap. In many cases, it’s deserved: horrifyingly technicolor gelatinous squares masquerade as “fruits” in an overly sweet, overly dry brick-like “cake.” No one who cares about you brings you fruitcake for the holidays. If you do get one, the giver is basically saying, “I care about you zero percent and have now saddled you with this for a lifetime.”

But fruitcake doesn’t have to be a friendship-wrecker or the butt of everyone’s jokes. Fruit-and-nut cakes can be quite delicious, a perfect accompaniment to afternoon tea or coffee. Holiday fruitcakes have the added bonus–they’re so full of warm spices that they basically double as a candle, perfuming your home with the scent of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger and orange zest for the hour or so that they bake.

This version, adapted from The Fanny Farmer Cookbook, is loaded: 4-1/2 cups of fruits and nuts in a batter of only 2 cups flour, 1 stick butter and 1 cup sugar. I got a bit carried away at the bulk bins in Whole Foods, and used a mix of dried figs, pineapple, apricots, dates, cranberries, almonds, pecans and cashews, but any combination works–raisins, blueberries, cherries, candied peel, etc. etc.

Unlike other fruitcake recipes, this one calls on dark molasses to add a rich, slightly bitter note to the cake. That plus the touch of ground ginger that I added recall another spicy holiday favorite, gingerbread. It also completely eschews alcohol, which, in a strange turn of events for me, was a bonus — I’ve been burned by too many boozy fruitcakes with an off-puttingly stale smell. You could soak a cheesecloth in brandy or dark rum and then wrap the cooled fruitcake in it, if you really want to (this apparently also helps preserve its freshness, though probably not for 130+ years).

If there was ever a fruitcake to convert the haters, this would be it. It’s spicy and only slightly sweet, punched up with the orange zest and molasses. And no bricks here — this cake is moist and lovely, the only thing you should be eating on holiday mornings.

Holiday Fruitcake

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Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• grated zest of 1 orange
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup dark (blackstrap) molasses
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 cups mixed dried fruit, chopped into small pieces (I used black mission figs, pineapple, apricots and dates)
• 1 cup dried cranberries (or raisins)
• 1–1/2 cups chopped nuts (I used a mix of pecans, almonds and cashews)
• 1/4 cup powdered sugar (optional)

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325F. Butter a 9-inch bundt pan well.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, cream together the butter, brown sugar and orange zest, until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Add the eggs and beat well, then beat in the molasses.
4. Using a wooden spoon or spatula, stir in half of the flour mixture until just combined. Stir in the milk until smooth, then stir in the rest of the flour until just combined. Stir in the dried fruit and nuts until just mixed.
5. Transfer the batter into the baking pan, smooth the top and bake for 60-70 minutes, until the top is springy to the touch. Let sit for about 10 minutes, then turn the cake out of the Bundt pan onto a wire rack to cool completely. Once the cake is cool, dust with powdered sugar (if desired) and serve.

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