Saturday, October 3, 2020

Old-Fashioned Fruitcake Recipes | Vintage Recipes and Cookery (Reblog)

I have a fond memory of fruitcake. It dates back over 40 years and it was the time when my husband-to-be took me to his childhood home in The Bahamas to meet his parents. It was the Christmas holiday season. His mother offered me a piece of fruitcake. I did not want to offend her but I really was not a fan of fruitcake. She served me a slice with a cup of coffee. I don't know where my mother-in-law got her fruitcake but to my surprise ... it was delicious!! That is a sweet memory and that's why I was happy to reblog this post. It evoked that memory and took me on a sentimental journey.

Most commercially-made fruitcakes are alcohol-free, but traditionally, fruitcakes usually contained alcohol; both for the flavor and to preserve the cakes for months. In the 1800s, wood burning stoves didn’t have temperature gauges, and oven temperatures varied based on the type and size wood used. You were supposed to learn how to determine the heat through experience. Some recipes ignored the oven temperature and others used terms such as a slow, moderate, or quick oven. ...

Old-Fashioned Fruitcake Recipes

| Vintage Recipes and Cookery from the 1800s

* * *

Did you know that food historians say fruitcakes were common in ancient Rome "when pomegranate seeds, pine nuts and barley mash were mixed together to form a ring-shaped dessert"? (Source)