It’s not just about Christmas cookies but also sweet pastries in the holiday season.
Why not bake a dessert that satisfies your taste buds and pleases your eyes? Fruitcake recipes are a great option that offers simplicity, fragrance, and deliciousness.
The combination of candied fruit, raisins, almonds, and nuts is simply irresistible!
Pecan Fruitcake
This Christmas pastry is characterized not only by its delicious taste but also by its aroma.
A small amount of alcohol, in addition to candied fruit and spices, contributes to this, but it can also be prepared without it.
Ingredients:
- 2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 cup of butter
- 4 eggs
- 2 cups candied pineapple
- 1 cup red candied cherries
- 1 cup green candied cherries
- 1 and 1/2 cup walnuts
- 1 cup raisins
- zest and juice of one lemon
- rind and juice of one orange
- 3 tablespoons of vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons of baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 300°F.
- Mix the candied fruit, raisins, and walnuts in a large bowl.
- In another bowl, beat the butter with the sugar until fluffy.
- Then, mix the eggs, vanilla extract, lemon, orange zest, and juice.
- Sift the sifted flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt and add to the cream mixture.
- Mix thoroughly.
- Pour the batter into the fruit and nut mixture.
- Mix thoroughly again.
- Prepare a mold, grease it, and sprinkle it with coarse flour.
- Pour the batter into the mold and put it in the oven.
- Bake for approximately 2 hours.
- After removing it from the oven, let the pudding cool for 10 minutes before turning it out.
A mold for a fruitcake is not required to prepare this dessert. You could use a cake mold as an alternative. If you’re looking for an even easier option, baking a bishop’s sandwich on a baking sheet is also possible.
Chocolate Fruit & Nut Cake
Dried fruit, especially apricots, figs, and dates, is frequently included in sandwiches in addition to candied fruit.
Ingredients:
- 1 and 1/2 cup plain flour
- 3/4 cup butter
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 5 eggs
- 1 and 1/2 cup raisins
- 1 cup of dried apricots
- 1 cup dried figs
- 1 cup of candied fruit
- 1/2 cup prunes
- 1 and 1/2 cup raisins
- 3/4 cup almonds
- 1 peeled and coarsely grated apple
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
- 3/4 cup rum
- 1 tbsp freshly grated lemon peel
- 1 tbsp freshly grated orange peel
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
Method:
- Combine the dried fruit, raisins, and candied fruit in a large bowl.
- Add the dark rum, cover, and let the mixture soak at room temperature for at least 12 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 290°F.
- Whisk together the sifted flour, baking powder, spices, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Using a mixer, beat the butter and sugar until foamy.
- Then, reduce the speed and add the eggs one at a time.
- Slowly add the flour mixture to the mixer at low speed.
- Then remove the bowl from the blender and add lemon peel, orange peel, juice, grated apple, and almond slices.
- Finally, add the soaked fruit mixture and all the liquid if it has not already been absorbed.
- Mix the dough thoroughly and pour it into a greased and filled mold.
- Bake for about an hour and a half.
- Remove the pudding to cool before removing from the pan.
You can spread the Christmas sandwich with apricot jam and decorate it with walnut halves.
Another popular Christmas dessert is the one found in Germany. Get inspired by tasty recipes for German Christmas Stollen.
Fruitcake Loaf Cake
Fruitcake Loaf Cake is a richly flavored cream cheese batter. This cake is a quick, easy fruitcake, which you will love!
Ingredients:
- 2 and 1/4 cup plain flour
- 1 cup of sugar
- 3/4 cup butter
- 6 egg whites
- 3 tablespoons of milk
- 2 cups raisins
- 1 and 1/2 cups slivered almonds
- 1 cup of candied fruit
- 1/2 cup candied pineapple
- 1/2 cup shredded coconut
- 1 teaspoon of orange peel
- 1 teaspoon of lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon of lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 325 °F. Lightly grease a 9×5-inch standard loaf pan and line it with parchment paper.
- Soak the raisins in a bowl of water for 10 minutes.
- Drain the water and dry the raisins.
- Chop the raisins and candied fruit and put them in a bowl.
- Add the almonds and a quarter of the flour.
- Mix and set aside.
- Sift the remaining flour, baking soda, and salt in another bowl.
- Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar with the butter.
- Add the flour mixture with milk, orange, and lemon peel to the whipped sugar and butter.
- Mix and add candied fruit and grated coconut.
- At the end, mix the egg whites beaten into stiff snow into the dough.
- Pour into the baking dish and bake for approximately one hour.
After baking, you can decorate it with, for example, chocolate or lemon glaze. Try them out with our frosting recipes for more than just Christmas cookies.
Discover more recipes
Christmas Apricot and Walnut Fruitcake
Add cottage cheese or sour cream to the dough if you prefer soft dough. You will also be rewarded with a smoother taste.
Try this soft and fluffy Christmas Cake; you will fall in love with it!
Ingredients:
- 2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
- 2 cups of water
- 1 cup of butter
- 1 cup of sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese
- 1 and 1/2 cups of candied fruit
- 1 cup of dried apricots
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 cup of walnuts
- 1 teaspoon of baking powder
- 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Method:
- Preheat the oven to 325°F.
- Prepare loaf pans by lightly coating them with non-stick cooking spray and lining them with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Soak the raisins and dried apricots in water, add a quarter cup of sugar, and cook in a saucepan, stirring occasionally, for approximately 30 minutes.
- Then, let the mixture cool completely.
- In the meantime, mix the cottage cheese with the melted butter, remaining sugar, and vanilla extract.
- Add eggs to the resulting mixture and mix everything thoroughly.
- Add the cooled mixture of raisins and apricots and mix.
- Gradually mix in the sifted flour and baking powder.
- Finally, add candied fruit and walnuts to the dough.
- Then, pour the resulting dough into the mold.
- Place in the preheated oven and bake for approximately one hour.
If you’re looking for a new and delicious way to incorporate walnuts and hazelnuts into your baking,
we highly recommend trying some walnut cupcakes! Try our walnut cupcakes in many different variations.
Christmas Candied Fruit Cake
This easy fruitcake is perfect for the holidays. It’s light, tender, and full of dried fruits and nuts. You can sprinkle the loaf with brandy or leave it out.
Either way, this fruitcake is a welcome addition to the holiday table.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup plain flour
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/2 cup dried apricots
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup candied lemon
- 1/4 cup walnuts or pecans
- 1/4 cup of rum for soaking the fruit + 3 tablespoons of rum for the dough
- 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Method:
- In a large bowl, mix all the fruit and add a quarter cup of rum.
- Cover tightly and store at room temperature for at least 24 hours.
- The next day, preheat the oven to 325°F and grease the baking tin.
- Beat the butter and brown sugar until creamy.
- Then, beat in the eggs as well.
- Whisk together the flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda in a separate bowl.
- Add the flour mixture in small portions, along with the molasses, to the butter mixture, beating the dough briefly after each addition.
- Stir in soaked fruit and nuts.
- Pour the dough into the prepared form.
- Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 45 minutes.
- Remove the pudding from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes.
- Then, drizzle the pudding with three tablespoons of rum.
How is Christmas Fruitcake made?
This Christmas pastry is trendy in English-speaking countries.
The most essential ingredient is dried and candied fruit and nuts or almonds. Various spices, especially cinnamon, nutmeg, and alcohol, are then used to make the taste and smell special.
When it comes to dried fruit, raisins, apricots, cranberries, figs, and dates are most often used, while candied fruit mainly includes green and red cherries, possibly also pineapple and citrus peel.
How long does a Fruitcake last?
Due to the ingredients, especially candied fruit, nuts, and alcohol, an egg white sandwich is one of the desserts you can easily store for several months.
The ideal form of preservation is to sprinkle a small amount of alcohol, such as rum or brandy, after the bishop’s sandwiches have cooled and wrap them in parchment paper and a plastic zip-lock bag.
This method will allow the fruit sandwich to last for 6-8 weeks in the cold without any problems.