My mom would make it in early November and wrap it in cheesecloth soaked in brandy until Christmas.  So it is fruity and nutty and a little boozey.

The recipe – typical of ALL of my mother’s recipe is basically a list of ingredients with  temperature and baking times tacked on the end.

Fruitcake:

2 cups flour

1 3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp. baking powder

1 pint marachino cherries

1/2 lb. candied pineapple

1 lb. dates

1/2 lbs pecans

1/2 lbs. walnuts

1 lb. candied fruit mix

5 eggs, beaten

BAKE at 250 degrees F for 2 1/2  to  3 hours.

 

Just smell the deep and festive mix of  fruit and nuts!  

CLOSE UP!!!

Add flour, sugar and baking powder and stir until all of the flour and sugar is incorporated.

This smells so good!

add beaten eggs  to mixture  and stir well.

The dough is thick and looks very sticky.

Grease pans liberally and use wax or parchment paper to keep mixture from sticking to sides of your pan.

Now you can decorate the cakes, using candied pineapple and the red and green glacee cherries.  Cut the green pineapple into leaf shapes and the red into petals- pop some cherries in for the centers and you have bright and happy little fruitcakes!

You can make them in smaller sizes or in a large loaf pan- just make sure that you use parchment or wax paper and lots of Pam to keep them from sticking.

Happy Holidays- and don’t forget to wrap them in whiskey or brandy soaked cheesecloth for a couple of weeks, at least!