[oldman]

Some thoughts on fruitcake....

People who don't like fruitcake have never had good fruitcake.
Good fruitcake isn't cheap.
There's a lot of bad fruitcake out there.

If the only fruit cake you've ever has was $3 at Walgreens and was baked in the paper it was wrapped in you probably don't like fruitcake. I qualify this because there are people who love hamburgers but only eat at MickeyD's. The "candied fruit" in those doorstops is closer to parrafin than it is to food, and the other ingredients were probably the lowest quality available too. Also, booze would probably have been represented by imitation brandy flavor at best and at worst by imitation rum or a total disregard of tradition.

If you're making your own fruitcake you don't want to buy the same cheap ingredients bulk manufacturers use. A recipe is good to have, but not essential. And if you do work with one you can use it as a guideline, not as a divine mandate. I have yet to see any recipe carved in stone.

The batter is basic, kind of a combination of shortbread and pound cake. The batter makes up about 1/3 of the cake, but it's the glue (metaphorically) that holds the cake together, both In terms of flavor and physical structure. While it's the mortar for the cake you don't want it that dense. You also don't want it too strongly flavor or too sweet. Shortbread and pound cake, basic and balanced. But you can still add you own touches. A moderate amount of fresh orange or lemon zest or a few tablespoons of a favorite spiced rum. But don't overdo it. It's always easier to add flavor than it is to remove it. And one flavor is more predictable than a blend of them.

Fruits, nuts, and spices are a matter of personal preference. Secret recipes often hinge on something as simple as adding a 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper or a few dashes of orange bitters. So don't be afraid to incorporate flavors you like in other foods into your batter. Don't add spice after you've incorporated the fruit thought. It's both difficult to mix and difficult to sample at that point. Other things not to add to the batter are lots of liquid (there's a reason we want dry fruit), candy of any kind (not even Michigan cherries and definitely not chocolate) and anything that with change the uniform consistency of the batter (cookie pieces shouldn't be added to some things and not everything is better with bacon). What you do add is a variety of fruits and nuts. Black walnuts are a no because they're too strongly flavored but English walnuts and pecans are standards, almonds are acceptable, and I think macadamia and hazelnuts are marginal due to fat content. Peanuts should be used only by people who didn't take my advice about the bacon. For the fruit candied fruit and peel is often used because it adds color and lower quality fruit is less noticeable after it's candied. Unless you're making your own or have a supplier at a farmers market you trust I'd recommend just using dried fruit. Use well dried fruit with good structure. Strawberries, bananas, raspberries, mulberries, pawpaw, and similar fruits will fall apart, discolor your batter, and generally speaking not do well in fruitcake. The key is to get fruit that is dried but not rigid. You want the fruit to have some moisture, like raisins, but not more moisture than the batter or so little that it immediately starts absorbing moisture from the batter. Some recipes call for soaking the fruit in liquid. This is what's referred to as a shortcut. It's used by people who try to make fruit cake for Christmas after Thanksgiving. As with most shortcuts your mileage will vary. But if you must use it don't soak the fruit in too much alcohol. You'll ruin the flavor of the fruit. Use a few tablespoons of alcohol to aid absorption and give some flavor to the liquid, but use a few cups of white grape juice or coconut water to get the additional flavor into the fruit without overpowering it. And if you soak the frit for an hour, drain it for at least four hours before using it in fruitcake (which means get the fruit ready before you start the batter. You bake the cake before you need to worry about the last ingredient.

The cake will bake longer than most cakes, raise less, and need a lower temperature. It's like cheesecakes in that your target is the proper moisture content offset by good color. Golden brown, nor dark, and firm but not dry. Pan shape and size will impact the final product. I prefer a round pan. 9 or 10 inches in diameter and 4 inches deep if doing one large cake or 4 inch springforms if doing smaller trial runs or making gift basket sized fruitcakes.

Fruitcake starts drying out as soon as it is baked. Not only is moisture lost as the cake bakes but the fruit will absorb liquid from the cake during baking and release it only slowly after the cake is cooked. If you soaked the fruit your cake will be moist and the fruit with be plump. Good if you want to eat it right away, but not ideal for fruitcake. Lasagna is always better the second day. Fruitcake can take weeks for the flavors to marry. And of course it's the cook's job to facilitate the marriage with sugar and/or booze.

After your fruitcakes have cooled for a couple hours you're ready to glaze with a mixture of sugar, water, and booze. Mixture, not a sugar syrup with booze added. The water adds moisture. The alcohol adds flavor and helps the flavors blend, and the sugar helps maintain moisture while discouraging bacteria and makes you fruitcake shiny without hiding its color. Let the glaze dry for about an hour and then store the cake in an airtight container at cool room temperature. Repeat every five to seven until you're ready to eat it. Glazing too often can result in a sticky or too moist cake. If you've got that just leave the lid on the container loose for a day or two to allow it to dry. Too much rum or brandy in you glaze can give you a cake that tastes like an Old Fashioned rather than a cake. But that can work for people who like cocktails more than they like fruitcake.

And even if your first attempt at fruitcake isn't magazine cover worthy it will likely still be well above average. Because there's a lot of bad fruitcake out there.