FAVORITE CHRISTMAS FRUITCAKE
Go to the crafts store.
Purchase one or more bags of dried fruit, some plaster of paris, brown paint and a disposable cake pan.
Go home.
Unwrap the dried fruit, carefully folding the wrapper inside-out and placing it at the bottom of your trash can. Better yet, send it through your personal paper shredder and use it for insulation in the attic.
Mix the plaster of paris with water and pour into the disposable cake pan.
Place dried fruit on top, gently pushing in so it looks "baked" in the "batter." Let dry.
Take your "fruitcake" out of the disposable cake pan.
Cover the top, bottom and sides with brown paint, avoiding the fruit.
Wrap your "fruitcake" in festive, colored saran wrap and finish with a bow. I like using red wrap because it gives a warm glow to the "fruitcake."
Give your "fruitcake" to someone you want to impress.
When they lift it, they'll say, "Wow! You must have made a really rich fruitcake!" Don't forget to smile and say, "Oh, its Paris-style fruitcake."
Don't worry about someone trying to eat your fruitcake. Nobody actually eats fruitcake... that's just a rumor.
Just so you know, the dried fruit won' go "bad" because it has the same preservatives as Twinkies, which have a shelf-life of about 237 years
The round bread with hole is the KAKA bread.
(SWEDISH KAKA (Rye Bread) HONO_HONOKAKOR - Aunt Maxine Josephson
There are many variations of this bread which is often baked on the island of Sweden. This recipe came from her in-laws, they brought it with them from Sweeden.
2 pkgs dry yeast
1/4 c warm water
1/4 cup shortening
1 quart scalded milk
1 1/2 cup sugar
1/4 c molasses or maple syrup
2 T salt
2-3 T aniseed, ground or 2-3 T fennel seed, (I use fennel)
3 cups rye flour
9 cups white flour
Mix yeast & warm water in a bowl. In saucepan, put shortening and milk, heat to a scald. In large bowl mix molasses or syrup, salt, aniseed or fennel, rye & white flour, add the yeast. Work the dough until smooth and shiny. Cover and let rise til double. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead well. Cover and let rise under a baking cloth in a warm room til double again. Then, with a rolling pin or your hands, flatten out large rounds of bread. Place bread on greased baking sheet and allow to rise. Prick surface with a fork, cut small hole in center of round. Bake 350º about 25-35 minutes. remove & cool. you also can bake in Bundt pan or bread pans.
BEST EVER FRUITCAKE - Mary M Jones/marmac34
this is a very moist cake.
for the cake:
1 can coconut
3 c golden raisins
1 1/2 c chopped Dates
2 c chopped nuts
1 1/2 c candied cherries
1 1/2 c candied pineapple
3 T Brandy flavoring (optional)
1/2 lb. orange peel
1/2 lb lemon peel
1/4 c flour
mix all together, set aside
mix together:
2 c brown sugar packed
1 c margarine softened
1 c eggs (4 lg
1/2 c orange marmalade
1/2 c orange juice
2 3/4 c flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
1 tsp salt
Preheat oven to 250º.
In large mixing bowl, cream sugar and butter Add eggs beat well. add dry ingredients, marmalade, and juice. Stir in fruit mixture. Pour batter into 5 small greased pans.
Bake 250º oven about 2 hrs. keep checking.
place a pan of water on bottom oven rack while baking.
NANNY'S SUET/PLUM PUDDING - in memory of my Mother
this recipe was handed down from my great grandmther. We always had it for Thanksgiving and Christmas
1 cup milk
1 cup chopped suet
1 cup molasses
1 tsp baking soda
3 cups flour
1 cup raisins
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
In a large bowl combine suet, molasses, milk, baking soda, flour and raisins. Place batter in covered pudding mold, or coffee cans and steam, for 3 to 4 hours. Serve with a Hard Sauce on pudding
HARD SAUCE
Refers to a mixture of butter and sugar that are beaten together until smooth and then flavored with extracts such as vanilla or alcoholic beverages such as brandy or rum. The mixture is then refrigerated until it hardens. Serve with suet/plum pudding or similar desserts.
HARD SAUCE 1
1/2 c Butter; softened
2 1/2 c Sifted confectioners' sugar
1 tb Brandy, optional
Few drops cream; if needed
NEW ENGLAND INDIAN PUDDING - in memory of my Mother
has been handed down thru generations of her family in Maine. It dates back into the 1700's. served at Thanksgiving and Christmas
Place 2 c milk in double boiler with 4 T cornmeal and cook, stirring until thick and smooth like mush. Add 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp Cinnamon
2 eggs, beaten
a custard cup (1/3 to 1/2 cup) EACH of molasses and brown sugar, to taste
stir together, place in 250º to 300º oven to thicken a little, then add 2 c milk. DO NOT STIR in the milk.
bake about 1 1/2 to 2 hrs. When a knife comes out clean, it's done. Serve hot with ice cream or whipped cream
DATE & NUT COOKIES - Roberta Smith
1 lb. cream cheese, [16 oz]
2 c crisco or butter
3 c flour
mix together like pie crust. chill in refrigertor for 2 hrs. or overnight
Filling:
cut 1 lb dates in small pieces, cook with 1/2 c water until soft.
remove from heat, add 1/2 c sugar.
add 1 c chopped nuts. let cool.
Roll out like pie crust on lightly floured board, cut with round cookie cutter.
add at least 1/2 tsp filling on top, pinch dough together with fingers.
place on ungreased cooke sheet. bake 375º for 20-25 min. frost while hot
Frosting
1 1/2 c conf. sugar
1/4 c marschino cherry juice
mix tgether till thin. glaze cookies while hot. place 1/4 cherry on top.
CHEESE PUFF
5 slices of bread
butter
Cream Cheese
5 slices of bacon
toothpicks
Butter each slice. Spread cream cheese on each slice.
Roll each slice. Slice each bread roll into 3 equal pieces.
Cut each bacon slice into 3 equal pieces. Roll bacon around each bread roll. Spear with toothpick each bread roll.
Place in preheated oven at 400º for 15-20 minutes.(until bacon is crisp)
CHRISTMAS ROLLS
1 pkg frozen dinner rolls
1/2 cup pecans
1 cup brown sugar
12 oz bag of semisweet chocolate morsels
1 tsp cinnamon
1 pkg butterscotch pudding
Place pecans on the bottom of an angel cake pan. Put rolls on top of pecans.
Sprinkle pudding on top of rolls. Melt butter and mix in sugar and cinnamon.
Pour mixture( butter) on top of rolls.
Leave out on counter covered with a towel over night. Bake at 375º for 30 minutes the next morning.
SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE - Mary
1 lg can sweet potatoes, cut in chunks
3/4 - 1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 to 2 c minature marshmallows
cinnamon
nutmeg
layer sweet potatoes,sugar, butter,marshmallows, cinn. and nutmeg in a greased casserole
sprinkle cinn. and nutmeg on top
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
CRANBERRY APPLE RELISH SALAD - Mary/marmac34
2 c raw chopped cranberries
2 cups diced Tart apples
2 cups sugar
2 c diced celery
2 c chopped walnuts
1 4 oz. pkg Strawberry Jello(small)
1 4 oz. pkg. Orange Jello(small)
3 c hot water
mix jello and water, refrigerate till starts t set.
mix cranberries & sugar. When jello is set, add cranberries and all remaining ingredients
FRUITED PULL APART BREAD - Lucille Putnam
3/4 c. water (70º to 80º)
1 T butter, softened
3 T sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 T nonfat dry milk powder
2 1/4 c. bread flour
1 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
TOPPING
1 c. sugar
1 1/4 tsps. cinnamon
1/2 c. pecan halves
1/3 c. halved maraschino cherries
2 Tb. raisins
2 T. dried cranberries or use more cherries & raisins
1/3 c. melted butter
In bread machine pan, place the first seven ingreds. in order suggested by mfg. Select the DOUGH setting.
Check dough after 5 minutes of mixing; add 1 to 2 T. of water or flour if needed - mine needed nothing). When cycle is completed turn dough onto a floured surface and punch down. Divide into 40 portions. In a bowl, combine the sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle 2 tsps in a greased 10 inch fluted tube pan. Arrange a third of the pecans, cherries & raisins in bottom of pan. Dip half of the dough pieces in the butter, then roll in sugar mixture. Arrange evenly in pan. Repeat. Arrange remaining pecans and fruit over top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Bake at 350º 30 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan for 5 minutes before inverting onto a serving platter. Yield: 1 loaf
NOTE: -- I greased the pan, and got the cinnamon-sugar, pecans, etc. ready when the dough was down to about 20 or 30 minutes left on the cycle. Put the pecans upside down and the cherries with the cut side down on the first layer so they will look pretty when finished. I had sugar/cinnamon left over so I put several more tsps of it on the final layer and threw the remainder out. It would be too sweet using all of the remainder. The butter has worked out just perfect each time I've made it. The butter/sugar/cinnamon will look rather juicy when you take it out of oven, but it all thickens up and stays with the bread when you take it out 5 minutes later.
BEST EVER FILLED COOKIES - in memory Gramma Holcomb
4 c flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking soda
Salt
1 c shortening
2 c Brown sugar
2 Eggs
1/2 c sour milk OR water
1 tsp vanilla
RAISIN FILLING
1/2 c sugar
1 c Raisins, ground
1 c Water
2 T Cornstarch or flour
2 T Chopped nuts
Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together; set aside. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars thoroughly. Add the eggs, milk and vanilla; beat at high speed for 2 min. Lower the speed and add the flour mixture gradually. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours. To prepare the raisin filling, grind the rasins. You should have 1 cup of ground raisins. In a medium saucepan combine raisins, sugar, water. Combine 2 T of water with the cornstarch, use to thicken the raisin mixture. when cool stir in the nuts. Roll out the dough on a floured surface. Cut into rounds with a cookie cutter. Place the rounds on greased cookie sheet. Place a heaping teaspoon of filling mixture on the cookie round, top with another round, crimp the edges closed. Bake at 375º about 10 minutes. Allow to cool
JOY'S FAMILY FRUITCAKE - Joyruth
1/2 cup white raisins
1 lb candied pineapple chopped
1 lb candied cherries chopped
1 lb pecans
1/2 cup dates
1/2 cup figs
1/4 tsp. bakin soda
2 sticks butter
2 cups sugar
6 whole eggs
1 cup dark rum (or whatever you like)
1 1/2 tsp. allspice
1 1/2 t. cinnamon
1 tsp. cloves
Coat all fruit and nuts in one of the cups of flour, then combine rest of ingredients.
Bake in tube pan , that is lined, for 2 hrs at 250º (this may vary with your stove, mine now takes longer) Let cool in pan. To retain flavor during storage in cool place, soak white cheese cloth in run and cover cake, then seal in air tight container. Hope you enjoy!!!! Yes, have a little nip of the rum!
