Does anyone have a easy and great tasting light fruit cake recipe? I need one for a cake for the end of November. Thanks!

I've made Emeril's Creole Christmas white fruitcake (without sauce) and it was well received:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/creole-christmas-fruit-cake-with-whiskey-sauce-recipe/index.html

HTH

Hi, I use a combination recipe that I have tweaked over the years...
It is a combo of James Beard's and Eudora Welty's ancient recipes and I've never written it down. My advice is to use a white fruitcake recipe...most of the dark cakes are not to my liking and have spices in them, which I don't care for either. I use brandy intead of rum(much better flavor), use dried fruits like dark and white raisins, dried cherries and cranberries, and only candied cherries and pineapple. DON'T just use the citron fruit mix available in grocery stores...it's nasty and bitter. I add only a very small amount of this to get a bit of the flavour, but very little. I use whole pecans, not chopped, and add a 16 oz container of candied red cherries that have been halved and a small one of green cherries, I also use chopped apricots. Like Beard, I let my fruits soak in brandy for a couple of days...I think I use a lot more brandy than Mr. Beard does, My fruitcake has very little cake, it is more like fruit covered in batter!

Check out this webstie:

http://www.squidoo.com/christmas-fruitcake#module4994348

Here is James Beard's white fruitcake recipe...

http://www.squidoo.com/christmas-fruitcake#module4994348

I couldn't find my Christmas recipe file(!) for the Welty cake, but it is almost identical to the Beard recipe.

Fruitcake is WICKED expensive to make...I use a dozen eggs, real butter, and the fruits are really very pricy and $$. The cakes weigh a ton and should "ripen" for several weeks to mellow out. I like the look of the cake in a tube pan but this year plan on doing them in 6" rounds.

Hope this helps. I have requests in January for folks to get a fruitcake for the next Christmas! I began prepping for fruitcake this weekend.

There were two recipes that vickymacd posted in one of the forums. I'm not a fruit cake fan but these sounded intriguing and I'm going to make them to give in my food baskets. I'll reprint them from her posting:

know everyone hates fruitcake, and so do I! These two recipes turned me around!!! I make them every year and every year these are eaten up by those that come to my house!

Holiday White Fruitcake from Vicky
1-3/4 cup allo purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1-1/2 cups butter, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
1 Tbl. lemon extract
5 eggs
2 cups candied pineapple, cut up
4 cups pecan halves
1-1/2 cups candied cherries, whole or cut up

Heat oven to 300 degrees.
Grease and flour a 10" tube pan or 2 loaf pans.
In large bowl, combine first 8 ingredients..
Blend 1 minute at low speed, scraping bowl.
Beat 2 min. at medium speed.
Stir in remaining ingredients.
Spoon batter into prepared pans.
Bake 1-1/2 to 2 hours until toothpick comes clean.
Loaf pans: bake 65-75 minutes.

Cool. remove from pan.
Store tightly wrapped in frig for up to 6 mths.


Individual Mini Fruitcakes from Vicky
1 pound pecans
1 pound dates, pitted
3/4 pound candied cherries
1 pound candied pineapple
3/4 cup sifted flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs

Combine nuts and fruits in large bowl. Stir in flour, sugar, baking pwd., and salt. Mix well.

Beat eggs until foamy, add to first mixture and blend well.
Drop by tablespoons into mini paper baking cups, filling them full.
Bake in 300 degree oven for about 40 minutes.
Makes about 35.
Note: Be sure to cut up all fruit.

The video link you sent for fruitcake, rocketmom1985, sounds really good. Is that the one you use? (He said it is a poundcake with dried cherries, etc.)

Yes, like Mom says, similar but different! He uses Capt Morgan spiced rum. It does remind me of a pound cake as does mine. Mine is really heavily loaded. Like the baker when she's done! I always pour brandy on the hot cakes as they come out of the oven and the smell is to die for...my son who wouldn't touch fruitcake in this lifetime always says when he thinks of Christmas, it is him helping me pour the brandy on the cakes and hearing the sizzle and the aroma.

Here is the correct link for James Beard's White fruitcake recipe...so sorry for the mixup.

http://fooddownunder.com/cgi-bin/recipe.cgi?r=139767

Vicky's cakes look good too! I used to hate fruitcake and still would if I ate the garbage sold as fruitcake nowadays!

What type of brandy do you use? I don't drink at all so I have no clue.

LOL! I let DH buy the brandy...just ran into kitchen to see what it was...E & J Brandy is what he bought. I assume (knowing my DH) that it was the least expensive on the shelf...most likely found on the bottom shelf!

hugs

Thanks so much for your replies. I will try them. I normally don't make or like fruit cake either but I am doing and entry for a competition for our local festival of trees and it starts at the end of November. Because they sit for a few days and then are auctioned for the childrens hospital they must be able to sit out. I will let you know how they turn out. Again thanks for your replies.

Applesauce fruitcakes are very moist and while they contain spices they aren't real dark because they don't use molasses:

http://www.recipezaar.com/Applesauce-Fruitcake-185566

HTH