We have a holiday tradition in my family that involves fruitcake.
Now, I know what you might be thinking--Fruitcake? The stuff that is the brunt of nearly all food-related jokes during the holiday season?
Yep. That's the stuff!
But hear me out . . .
Usually around Thanksgiving time, the gooey-candied chopped-up fruit shows up in the baking aisle at the grocery store, and that's when my mind turns to an old fruitcake recipe that has been in my family for decades
Years ago, might even be before I was born, my mom asked my aunt to share her fruitcake recipe. It was homemade, but wasn't filled with dark, sticky molasses. It was filled with candied fruit, pecans, and golden raisins, decorated on top with more nuts and candied fruit. But it also had a tasty yellow cake, not thick sticky molasses cake, binding all the fruit together.
The original recipe called for 1/3 cup of brandy, but my mom thought that may be making the cake a little dry. Instead of the full measure of booze, my mom added orange juice with the brandy. And the result was a super-moist fruitcake that is no joke!
My mom and my aunt have since passed, but the fruitcake is still a family tradition each holiday season. If you're a fruitcake person, here's the recipe.
Enjoy!
