Willis Davidson’s Famous Fruitcake Recipe

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5 votes | 10625 views

toronto star

 
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Ingredients

Directions

  1. Day 1:
  2. In large bowl, mix together dates, citron peel, raisins, currants, almonds and cherries. Stir in 1/2 cup brandy or fruit juice. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature overnight. In saucepan, combine pineapple and 2 cups sugar; bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently, 30-40 minutes or until mixture thickens. There should be about 2-1/2 cups of pineapple mixture. Remove from heat, stir in reserved cherry liquid and jam; cover and refrigerate overnight.
  3. Day 2:
  4. Generously grease and line 5 9” x 5” loaf pans or 3 standard wedding cake pans with waxed paper, parchment paper or aluminum foil; grease lining. In bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, cloves and allspice; set aside. Add 1 cup of flour mixture to date mixture and toss to thoroughly coat fruits. In large mixing bowl, cream butter and 2 cups sugar; beat in eggs, 1 at a time, blending well after each addition. Alternately stir in small amounts of flour mixture and pineapple mixture into butter mixture and blend well. Stir in date mixture. Spoon batter into prepared pans. Place a large, shallow pan of water on bottom rack of oven; fill half full with hot water and preheat oven to 275°F. Place loaf pans on middle rack and bake 1-1/2 to 2 hours or until tester inserted in centre comes out clean – test often as ovens and baking pans vary. Remove cakes from oven; cool 10 minutes. Remove from pan, peel off paper and cool. Wrap individually in cheesecloth soaked in remaining 2-3 tbsp. brandy. Wrap in plastic wrap then aluminum foil. Store in cool place and moisten cheesecloth occasionally with additional brandy.
  5. Note: This fruitcake is the most requested of all holiday recipes published in The Toronto Star.
  6. Notes:
  7. Baking times will vary if using wedding cake pans; check often after 1 hour.
  8. Recipe makes 5 cakes, about 2-1/4 lbs. each
  9. Aging is optional for this cake – cuts perfectly the day after baking.
  10. Cake can be served with or without icing.

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Reviews

  • Anne
    I have been making this recipe since 1971. I clipped it from the Toronto Star and have been making every Christmas since. It is a very rich, moist cake.
    I've cooked/tasted this recipe!
    • Christine
      I still have the Toronto Star clip,covered in cake and in pieces.
      Christmas would not be same .
      I decorate Engkish way with marzipan and royal icing
      And use some ornaments from my childhood.
      Now buy miniature ones including the nativity
      Thank you
      I've cooked/tasted this recipe!

      Comments

      • Teresa Keon
        November 29, 2022
        I have been making this cake since 1975. It is always ‘in demand’. Though I do douse it in Ameratto for a special treat!
        • Rosemary A White
          December 17, 2020
          The recipe named Willis Davidson's Fruitcake 2 posted elsewhere on this site is the authentic recipe. It includes the muscat/Lexia seeded raisins which provide the fruitcake not only 2 cups more fruit than the recipe above but also texture and flavour essential, in my opinion, to the success of the cakes.

          I've made the W.D. Fruitcake every Christmas for 37 years and it always tastes delicious. Follow recipe # 2 for the best results.
          • Ann Corkery
            October 1, 2019
            I recieved this recipe from a friend best fruit cake ever.
            • Joyce
              December 4, 2015
              I've also been baking this recipe for many years now. I clipped this recipe from the Toronto Star, and left it in my recipe pile for whenever I got the motivation to do such an incredible task. I finally started making it back in the early 1980's, when my 2 daughters were very young. As a single parent on a budget, I decided to make this a gift from the heart and give them away to family and close friends. I still continue make it, even though my daughters have moved from home, married and are raising their own families.

              Because I make so many cakes to give away, I learned a new trick to yield even more fruitcakes:
              I use the same amounts when mixing my dried fruits, but double up on the flour mixture, pineapple mixture, butter and sugar so that I have double the cake batter. This doubles the amount of baked loaves. Since there's plenty of fruit to begin with, it incorporates well into the loaves when they're given away as gifts. They're still very full of fruit! A word of caution though: more batter means an extra large mixing bowl, or commercial type mixer that will accommodate the larger volume.

              I recently misplaced my recipe, so I found this recipe here (Hallelujah!). I still get requests (and hints) from my family and friends every year, and I never disappoint. Merry Christmas to whomever reads this!
              • Irene taylor
                November 28, 2015
                I have been making the Wiilis fruitcake since 1983 family and friends love it, and it is one of my most requested Christmas treats. It always turns out amazing

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