This tasty traditional Christmas Fruit Cake is packed with plenty of sweet fruit, nuts, and cozy spices – a perfect addition to your holiday baking list! Super easy and quick to make, no overnight soaking, but incredible delicious!
“No, no, not the dreadful fruit cake…” Fear not my friends, I promise this moist and fruity cake is loaded with yummy cherries, raisins, and candied apricots. Not to mention a drizzle or two (maybe more) of booze – perhaps not like grandma’s house at all!
I really did my best on this cake because I realize that the term “fruit cake” has a bit of an unappealing reputation for some! For others it is something to look forward to every year! It has a distinct flavor and you can’t compare it to any other cake out there – so if you’re a “fruit cake virgin” I highly recommend giving it a chance!
I wanted to go for a lighter more fluffier cake, rather than the dreaded typical Christmas cake. I love he flavor of the nutmeg and cloves in this cake, plus the simplicity of it. Everyone that’s tried my fruit cake, absolutely loved it, so let’s see how to make it.
Ingredients
Don’t forget detailed measurements and instructions are located on the printable recipe card at the bottom of this page!
- Flour – All-purpose white flour you’ll also want and extra portion of 2 tbsp to drizzle over the fruit later!
- Baking powder – Our leavening agent.
- Salt – You basically can’t bake without it!
- Spices – Ground nutmeg and ground cloves, fresh is best!
- Butter – Unsalted.
- Sugar – White granulated sugar will do the trick!
- Eggs – I’m using 6 eggs today!
- Orange zest – This ingredient gives life to this cake! And many other baked goods!
- Raisins – I’m using golden raisins, but you can use regular ones if it’s all you can find!
- Cherries – Green and red maraschino cherries, chopped.
- Candied apricots – Chopped.
- Nuts – I used a combination of chopped walnuts and whole pecans.
- Booze – This is optional of course – today I used cointreau but feel free to use dark rum, whiskey, bourbon, or amaretto!
How To Make Christmas Fruit Cake
- Preheat oven: To 350 F degrees, and generously grease a large 10 inch tube pan with butter, followed by a dusting of flour.
- In a large bowl: Stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cloves; set aside.
- In a different bowl: Cream together the butter and sugar; mix well. Next, beat in the eggs, one at a time. Note – the batter may look curdled and that’s okay! Finally, stir in half the cointreau or the alcohol of your choice and the orange zest.
- Combine ingredients: Gradually combine both bowls of wet and dry ingredients, until well incorporated.
- Mix fruits and nuts: In a bowl, mix together the raisins, cherries, apricots, and walnuts. Drizzle with remaining 2 tbsp of flour and stir again. Next, fold the fruit mixture into the cake batter.
- Prepare batter: Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth out the top – optionally you can use the walnuts to garnish the cake as well – I used whole pecans instead!
- Bake: Transfer the tube pan to the oven and bake for 75 minutes or until cooked through.
- Finish the cake: Let the cake cool for 5 minutes in the tube pan. Then transfer onto a cooling rack to finish cooling. To finish the cake, poke holes in it with a skewer or toothpick and drizzle the rest of the cointreau over the cake!
Other Additions
Well this list could take awhile! The variations in which I’ve seen this cake are endless – it really can be made to suit anyone’s style! Here are a few suggestions to get you started:
- Cranberries
- Orange or pineapple juice
- Booze – pick a booze any booze!
- Shredded coconut
- Pecans or almonds
- Applesauce
- Cream cheese
- Chocolate – in any form!
- Dates or prunes
- Spices – cinnamon, allspice, ginger – just go for it!
Can I Make This Fruit Cake Gluten Free?
Yes you can! When it comes to gluten free baking it’s important to remember to use a thickening/stabilizing agent, such as xanthan gum – we do this because it replaces the elasticity that gluten provides in our baked goods. You can use gluten free flour as a 1:1 ratio and then add 1 teaspoon of your thickening agent for every 1 cup of gluten free flour.
How To Serve
There are different ways you can go about serving this fruitcake. I mean, you can really eat it at all times of the day! Here are some ideas:
- On a platter: Serve the fruitcake on a platter cut up into cubes, alongside some soft brie or sharp cheddar cheese.
- With beverages: Fruit cake goes great with a glass of red wine, champagne or other aperitifs such as, campari or aperol.
- For breakfast: We all know I love my cake for breakfast, alongside a hot cup of coffee – welcome to my personal heaven!
How To Store
I’m about to blow your mind with this one you guys! Fruitcake is good anywhere from 1 month to a YEAR. Let me clarify.
- Room temperature: When stored properly at room temperature, covered with foil or placed in a plastic bag, this fruitcake will last up to 1 month.
- Fridge: Again, properly covered or wrapped in foil or plastic bag, this fruitcake will have a life expectancy of up to 6 months.
- Freezer: Fruitcake will maintain it’s best quality up to 12 months in the freezer but will keep safe indefinitely (yes you read that right!) when stored properly.
More Delicious Holiday Recipes Here:
- Chocolate Pecan Pie Cookies
- Sugared Cranberries
- Berry Brioche Bread Pudding
- Brown Sugar Scottish Shortbread
- Sticky Buns
- Mulled Wine
- Soft Oatmeal Cookies
- Chocolate Swiss Roll Cake
Or simply check out all my Christmas recipes right here —> Christmas Recipes
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Christmas Fruit Cake
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg ground
- 1/4 tsp cloves ground
- 1 cup butter unsalted, softened
- 1 1/4 cup sugar
- 6 large eggs
- zest of one orange
- 1 cup golden raisins
- 1/2 cup green maraschino cherries chopped
- 1/2 cup red maraschino cherries chopped
- 3/4 cup dried apricots chopped (or dates)
- 1 cup walnuts chopped
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 4 tbsp cointreau optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven: To 350 F degrees, and generously grease a large 10 inch tube pan with butter, followed by a dusting of flour.
- In a large bowl: Stir together the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and cloves; set aside.
- In a different bowl: Cream together the butter and sugar; mix well. Next, beat in the eggs, one at a time. Note – the batter may look curdled and that's okay! Finally, stir in half the cointreau or the alcohol of your choice and the orange zest.
- Combine ingredients: Gradually combine both bowls of wet and dry ingredients, until well incorporated.
- Mix fruits and nuts: In a bowl, mix together the raisins, cherries, apricots, and walnuts. Drizzle with remaining 2 tbsp of flour and stir again. Next, fold the fruit mixture into the cake batter.
- Prepare batter: Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and smooth out the top – optionally you can use the walnuts to garnish the cake as well – I used whole pecans instead!
- Bake: Transfer the tube pan to the oven and bake for 75 minutes or until cooked through.
- Finish the cake: Let the cake cool for 5 minutes in the tube pan. Then transfer onto a cooling rack to finish cooling. To finish the cake, poke holes in it with a skewer or toothpick and drizzle the rest of the cointreau over the cake!
Video
Recipe Notes
- Room temperature: When stored properly at room temperature, covered with foil or placed in a plastic bag, this fruitcake will last up to 1 month.
- Fridge: Again, properly covered or wrapped in foil or plastic bag, this fruitcake will have a life expectancy of up to 6 months.
- Freezer: Fruitcake will maintain it’s best quality up to 12 months in the freezer but will keep safe indefinitely (yes you read that right!) when stored properly.
Anna Vincent says
We loved this recipe. I couldn’t find the green maraschino cherries, so I increased the amount of the red ones instead. I used a dark rum for the liquor. It was delicious. Will be making it again next Christmas.
jo says
Glad to hear you liked it!
Jakub Przrdzienkowski says
Looks like a recipe I’ll have to try. I don’t like traditional fruitcake with citron. I made up my own without it, but this one looks like a good one as well.
Chris W. says
When I was growing up, we had a neighbor, Mrs. Nelson, who made THE BEST fruit cake ever. It wasn’t like the usual brick textured one. It was light and very much sounds like your recipe. I can’t wait to try this version – sounds lovely!
Jo Cooks Team says
We think you’ll really love it! It gets even better the next day.