National Fruitcake Day

Sandra Boynton

Who knew?  Thanks to the talented and hilariously funny Sandra Boynton I now know.  A whole day dedicated to fruitcake.  You either love it or you hate it.  And most everyone I know falls into the latter camp.  But not moi!  I love it.  I've had some that were better than others, of course, but I refuse to be a hater.  (The Ex-Ex is a hater... but I keep hoping I will win him over.)

I've been a fan of Sandra's cartoons for a long time.  We even decorated Son #1's nursery with a wall paper border featuring her adorable critters.  When I saw the above post on Facebook this morning (yep, I stalk follow her), I reposted it for all those fruitcake haters out there to add comments. Instead, lo and behold, who do I hear from but my Cousin-in-Law in the great orange state of Tennessee.  (Go Vols!)  She falls into the lover category, too, just like me.  And it gets even better.  She has a recipe that belonged to my Daddy's sister, my Aunt Helen, her mother-in-law, and CIL even went to the trouble of digging it out of a recipe box so she could send it to me.  That is cousinly love, friends. Cousin-in-Law even found a photo of my beautiful Aunt Helen.  She did not like having her photo taken and I did not have a single one of her-- not until today!

Daddy's family is from High Point, but moved to Spruce Pine before he and the baby sister were born.

This is how I remember my grandparents best- (Papa is holding my nephew Jerm, I think)

Papa (George) and Grandma (Christine) had nine children, including one who died either in childbirth or shortly thereafter.  (My Cousin K will correct my Bell Family facts if I get something wrong.) Daddy Tommy was second to last.  A cutie pie for sure, n'est-ce pas?

I have a few family photos, thanks to Mama Mildred who let me go through a huge tin of photos and take the ones I wanted.
Here is one of me sitting on Mama's lap (check out the tummy-  I still have it!), with Grandma and her mother (I think?), one of my cousins and, I am sure, a beloved dog.  (Everyone seemed to get that dog-lover gene except me.)

When my parents moved back to Spruce Pine, after my dad's stint in the Army (Mama Mildred ran away to join him and get married in Louisiana at the tender age of 15- in this photo she is probably about 19 years old), they built a house right next door to Papa and Grandma and I spent a large percentage of my first 18 years at their house.  I loved them so much.  Papa George owned a small hosiery mill and gave his employees a fruitcake every Christmas.  We always got one, too.  Maybe that's why I love it so much?

Cousin-in-Law also found this photo, taken in Florida, where my Aunt Helen lived, and where my grandparents had a second home.

So, in honor of National Fruitcake Day and my Aunt Helen, I will pass on her favorite recipe for all you lovers out there.

I have no idea who Mrs. Harvey is.  The recipe looks as if it was cut out of a newspaper.  Here is the original recipe.  My modifications are listed at the end**.  In years past, I have made Fruitcake Bars and Fruitcake Cookies.  Both are very tasty... if you are a fruitcake lover.

Mrs. Harvey's White Fruitcake
makes 5 pounds cake

5 large eggs
1/2 pound butter or margarine
1 cup granulated sugar
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 pound candied cherries (1 pound = not quite 2 cups)
1 pound candied pineapple
4 cups shelled pecans
1/2 ounce vanilla extract (3 teaspoons or 1 tablespoon)
1/2 ounce lemon extract (3 teaspoons or 1 tablespoon)

Chop nuts and fruit into medium-sized pieces; dredge with small amount of flour.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add well-beaten eggs and blend well.  Sift remaining flour and baking powder together; fold into egg and butter mixture.  Add vanilla and lemon extracts; mix well; add fruits and nuts, blending well.

Grease 10-inch tube pan. Line sides and bottom with heavy brown paper; grease again.  Pour batter into prepared pan.  Place in cold oven and bake at 325˚F for 3 hours.

*Cake may be baked in two  3-inch loaf pans for 2 1/2 hours.

**I hope that Mrs. Harvey and Aunt Helen aren't rolling over in their graves right now, but I made some changes.  I used dried fruit --cherries, blueberries, cranberries, and pineapple (it is very sweet) instead of candied fruit. Next time, I think I will use dates instead of the pineapple.  I put the fruit and nuts in a Ziploc bag with about 1/4 cup of the flour to "dredge" them. While playing true confessions, I have to admit that I  misread the ingredients and put in 1/2 teaspoon of the vanilla and lemon extracts instead of 1/2 ounce.  I tasted the batter, however, before adding in the fruit and nuts and it tasted good. I buttered two loaf pans and did not line them with heavy brown paper.  I remember my mom doing this once upon a time, though.  Not sure why.  She used brown paper grocery store bags. I did line the bottom of my pans with parchment paper, though. Maybe the Ex-Ex will at least try it this time?

It is certainly full of goodies.  I tried a bite while it was still warm.  Yum.  The dried blueberries taste really good.

"People who like fruitcake will probably like that" he said with a strange look on his face.

Bon appétit to all fruitcake lovers, especially Cousin-in-Law and all the remaining Bells.

New Year Dates

Date Entry #1: New Year's Eve date
The Ex-Ex and I both have iPhones now.  Me? I got one the very day that Verizon came out with the 4s.  It's global which means it will work in France.  No more rental phones and all that hassle.  I saved my upgrade and pennies and snagged one.  The Ex-Ex?  His old flip phone finally gave up the ghost and died.  So, much to the surprise of our two Sons (and moi), he ordered an iPhone, too.  His is a school phone, though, so he is pretty picky about what he uses it for.  I persuaded him to use it to take a photo of me on New Year's Eve at Bull McCabe's in downtown Durham.  I didn't take my own with me.  Here is his first (and only) photo.  Yes, that's his finger in the way.  Oh well.  The blurry aspect works well for me actually.  We had a drink at Bull's as the DJ was getting set up and then pizza and Fullsteam beer at Satisfaction and called it an evening.  We left the dancing for the younger crowd.
Papa Bell always served greens and black-eyed peas for New Year's Day so I do the same.

Most years I am the only one in my house feasting on this simple meal, but the Ex-Ex ate some rice and beans with me.  The greens symbolize money-- folded up green bills.  The black-eyed peas are coins.  (I doubled my chances of economic prosperity in 2012 since I ate two servings!)  I decided to add brown rice just because I like it and it goes well with the peas.  I should've made cornbread, but didn't.  No one complained.  Son #2 feasted on scrambled eggs and toast.
I love fruitcake.  Even the kind with all the bright green and red candied fruits in it.  Mama Mildred had some that one of my cousins had made.  It was delicious.  She is supposed to be tracking down the recipe for me.  Papa Bell, my paternal grandfather, and one of the loves of my life, gave fruitcake to his employees at his hosiery mill every year.

We four grandkids also got one, too, of course.  Maybe the fact that it is associated with him is the reason I love it so much.
Date Entry #2:  Baking with dates
Anyway, I found a fabulous fruitcake recipe on David Lebovitz' website this week.  If you are unfamiliar with David and you are obsessed with Paris and baking, you need to check him out.  I was scared of him for a long time.  Famous people who get rave reviews scare me.  I always figure that whatever they are doing is way over my head.  (I am this way about books and movies sometimes, too, because I figure they cannot be as great as everyone says they are.  Well, they usually are.)  I read his blog faithfully now and bake some of his recipes.  He was a pastry chef at Alice Waters' Chez Panisse and he now lives in Paris.  (Yes, that makes a me a little green with jealousy. I am the first to admit it.)  I have David's The Sweet Life in Paris:  Delicious Adventures in the World's Most Glorious and Perplexing City.
David says this about the fruitcake:  "You don't have to feel bad when you polish off the whole pan in one afternoon."  That kind of quote makes me really like him.  This is a healthy version.  No butter.  Brown sugar.  The recipe calls for apricot halves, but you can substitute any dried fruit you happen to like or have on hand.  Just stick to the quantities in the recipe.  I used dried cranberries (Craisins) and a few leftover dried blueberries that were in the cupboard.  I mixed it all up with my hands.  The feel of the warm, just toasted walnuts was an added bonus.

That was much easier and more efficient.  I doubled the recipe and baked it in 4 small loaf pans.

It was very good with my morning coffee today.

Fruitcake Bars
David Lebovitz (adapted from Pure Dessert by Alice Medrich)

about 16 bars

6 Tbsp. (50 g) flour
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1/8 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
6 Tbsp. (80 g) packed light or dark brown sugar
2 c. walnuts, almonds or pecans (200 g), toasted and coarsely chopped
1 1/2 c. (170 g) dates, pitted and quartered
1 c. (170 g) dried apricot halves, snipped in half
1 large egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1.  Line an 8-inch (20 cm) pan across bottom and up sides with 2 sheets of aluminum foil, making a big criss-cross with sides overhanging.  (I just sprayed my small loaf pans with non-stick spray.)
2.  Preheat oven to 325˚F (160˚C) and position rack in center of oven.
3.  In a large bowl, toss together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add the brown sugar, nuts, dates, and apricots.  Use your fingers to mix the fruit, separating any pieces that are stuck together.
3.  Beat egg and vanilla in small bowl, then mix it with the fruit and nut mixture until everything is coated with batter.  Spread in pan and press gently to even out.
4.  Bake 35-40 minutes (my small loaf pans took 30 minutes) until top is golden brown and has pulled away just slightly from sides of pan.  Cool in pan, then lift out.  (I loosened mine just a bit by running a dull knife around the edges and then the loaves popped right out.)
5.  To cut the cooled bars, use a heavy sharp knife, such as a bread knife, for neat, clean slices.

Bars can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week.  Individual cakes can be wrapped in plastic.

Bon appétit, 2012!