All about the fruitcake

Fruitcakes – we have all seen them in the movies or in grannies kitchen.

The heavy and dark cake that looks like it went through seven stages of baking and sounds like a fist thumping against a wooden table when set down on a surface.

Yet, there is a day made for it. That’s right, today (December 27) is Fruitcake Day and it is made for the celebration of the cake that most seem to find synonymous with a brick.

While none of us know the true creator of the fruitcake, many historians believe that fruitcakes originated from Rome, and one of the earliest recipes known comes from ancient Rome listing pomegranate seeds, pine nuts and raisins that were mixed into a barley mash.

Then there are records from the middle ages documenting that they added honey, spices and preserved fruits into the original mix.

Starting in the 16th century, sugar from the American colonies along with the discovery that high concentrations of the sugar could preserve fruits ended up creating an enormous excess of candied fruits thus resulting in making fruitcakes more affordable and popular in regions around the world.

Fruitcakes have an incredible shelf life; they can remain on the shelves for many, many years and still be edible and not harmful to the human body.

Wondering how to celebrate Fruitcake Day?

Celebrating this day is easy. Gather the family together in the kitchen and make the fruitcake together, with fruits and nuts that everyone will enjoy.

Then, after the fruitcake is done baking, serve it up to everyone and perhaps huddle around on the couch to watch a holiday movie to add to the holiday spirit that surrounds the month of December.

Fruitcake may have had a humble beginning somewhere, but as time goes on, the dish becomes more popular, and sometimes … not in the way anyone would expect it to.

Find other interesting and maybe delicious ways to celebrate the day.

Information sourced from Days of The Year.