This recipe is my late grandmother's on my dad's side. Among many things, she was a hair stylist, a writer, and a blogger. She loved writing poems and always supported my blog and other businesses. I made this post a few years back but I decided it deserved an update.
When it comes to fruitcake I never really had any desire to eat or make one but when I discovered this recipe was my dad's favorite, I insisted my grandma share the recipe with me. It was so special. She let me borrow the pan she used to make hers. As she got older, she wasn't able to make this for herself or my dad anymore. Before she passed I was able to make it for her a few times.
Now no one should be surprised by the amount of butter in this recipe, my grandma was a woman from Arkansas, so base your butter expectations on that. Plus, this is definitely the moistest fruitcake I have EVER had or seen. So skip buying that one from the store and opt to make this one for yourself or your loved ones.
INGREDIENTS
- 4 sticks Butter, softened
- 6 Eggs, room temperature
- 2 cups Sugar
- 4 cups Flour
- 1 tsp. Baking Powder
- ½ tsp. Salt
- 2 cups Golden Raisins
- 1 8 oz. Container of Red Candied Cherries
- 1 8 oz. Container of Green Candied Cherries
- 1 8 oz. Container of Candied Pineapple
- 1-2 cups Walnuts or Pecans
- 2 oz. Lemon Extract
INSTRUCTIONS
Set out butter and eggs before starting the recipe to allow them to come down to room temperature.
Chop candied fruits into smaller pieces and add raisins.
Pour the entire bottle of lemon extract over the mixture and combine well. Let that soak for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a medium bowl, with an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until well incorporated. Once combined, add the eggs. The mixture will be lumpy.
In a separate bowl, mix together the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, and salt.
Add the dry ingredients slowly into the wet ingredients mixture and mix until well incorporated.
Add the candy mixture and nuts to the dough and fold in.
Spray a tube pan with nonstick spray. Add in the batter and smooth it out on top. *
Let bake for 2 and 1/2 hours or until the top is golden. I added the toppings after an hour of baking.
Enjoy!
* I definitely recommend placing a baking sheet on the bottom of your oven to avoid having to clean up any spillage from the bottom. Sometimes a minimal amount of butter and batter leaks out during baking.
First, set out the butter and eggs. Before starting the recipe, you want to allow them to come down to room temperature.
While those start coming down to room temperature, get started on the candied fruits. You want to chop them into finer pieces (think about the size of the pieces you want to bite into). In a medium bowl combine all your chopped fruits, raisins, and lemon extract. Toss until well combined. Let that sit for 30 minutes.
At this point, you can preheat your oven to 250 degrees F.
In a large bowl, cream together the softened butter and sugar. Then, add your eggs. The mixture will be lumpy.
In another bowl, combine the dry ingredients, flour, baking powder, and salt.
Fold in the fruit mixture and your choice of nuts.
Place in a greased angel food cake pan. Smooth the top and bake in the oven at 250 degrees F for 2 and a half hours.
I definitely recommend placing a baking sheet on the bottom of your oven to avoid having to clean up any spillage from the bottom. Sometimes a minimal amount of butter and batter leaks out during baking.
Let it completely cool and then carefully remove it from the pan.
Slice and enjoy! The outside should have a beautiful crisp layer and the inside should be soft, moist, and delicious.
I would love to know if you guys try this recipe and what you think! You can also 1/2 the recipe to get a much smaller fruitcake. Let me know over on Instagram, I will keep an eye out for any messages.
If you would like to save this recipe to Pinterest feel free to use this, or find me on Pinterest and repost it straight from me!
Happy Holidays!!