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Fruitcake: a holiday treat as solid as a rock

Instead of singing “The Twelve Days of Christmas,” we may want to write a new song, “The 62 Days of Christmas.” This year, I was in a store that was playing Christmas carols the day after Halloween.

We might complain about the length of the commercial Christmas season, but we need to remind ourselves that Christmas a century ago was a long festival. In the dark, cold countries of Northern Europe, the holiday season began with Advent, four Sundays before Christmas, and lasted until Jan. 6, or even until Jan. 31 in some places.

The Christmas season was a progressive festival, much of which centered on food. Each week various cookies, candies, breads and cakes were prepared. Fruitcake was one of the items. It needed to be made weeks in advance in order to age in rum-or brandy-soaked cloth.

Today, fruitcake has fallen out of favor. Health-conscious diners are suspicious of any food that will keep for months without preservatives. They don't realize sugar, honey and liqueur are some of the oldest preservatives known to food science.

There are thousands of fruitcake recipes. This one is from the 1961 edition of “ Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Cookbook .” I was drawn to this book because of a then-unknown illustrator by the name of Andrew Warhol. Three years after the book was published, Warhol would achieve more than 15 minutes of fame with his Campbell's soup can posters.

Holiday Fruitcake

Makes 2 cakes, about 24 slices

• 1 1/2 cups golden raisins
• 1 1/2 cup candied cherries
• 1/2 cup chopped dates
• 3/4 cup chopped dried apricots
• 3/4 cup slivered almonds
• 1 cup chopped pecans
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
• 2 tablespoons or more brandy or rum

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine dried fruits and nuts and set aside. In a bowl, beat butter and sugar. Beat in eggs. Gradually beat in flour, oats and spices. Mix in juice and zest. Stir in fruit and nuts.

Pour dough into two well greased 9-by-5-inch loaf pans. Place pans in center of oven and bake for 11/2 hours, or until an toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool in pans. Remove and drizzle brandy or rum over each loaf. Wrap tightly in foil. Store in a cool area but do not refrigerate. Wait three days before serving.

(Adapted from “ Amy Vanderbilt's Complete Cookbook ”.)

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