As Christmas gets closer my memory drifts back to my childhood in the 1950's and all the fruitcakes that were all over the house during the holiday season. There were fruit cakes in big round tins, small square tins, wrapped in clear plastic and in boxes. Fruitcakes with nuts, cherries and dried fruits of all kinds, all cemented together in a thick dense dark cake filling. Seems most people coming to visit always brought fruitcakes, they arrived in the mail, they were under the Christmas tree, they were every where. As kids we were sick of fruitcakes and can remember feeding some of them to the dogs we had. Now in my old age I have a desire for those old fashion fruitcakes. Went on-line to look for some, starting with good old Bi-Mart. All that came up in the search was different pancake mixes, dried fruit, can fruit and Fruit of the Loom underwear. Next, I searched on Harry and David and sure enough they have fruitcakes ranging in price from $20 to $80. Their classic traditional fruitcake comes in a round tin for $20. Hopefully it gets here by Christmas and I can share it with friends and neighbors. What would Christmas be without fruitcake in our old age as we reflect back on those childhood memories?
A collection of stories from the life of Michael Burke. He worked for the Forest Service in Alaska, California, and Oregon. He lives in Oakland, OR. His wonderful wife, Celia, passed in May of 2021
Friday, December 17, 2021
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FOUR YEAR ANNIVERSARY
It is four years today when Celia left this word, something I think about every day. It is not all sorrow as I think back on her humor, w...
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It is four years today when Celia left this word, something I think about every day. It is not all sorrow as I think back on her humor, w...
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In my early days with the Forest Service we were called upon to fight fires with little choice in the matter, especially on our days off or ...
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One of my most memorable Thanksgivings was when I lived in Eugene from 1991 to 2000. My two children were with me on Thanksgiving of 1992...
Fruit stolens are good too as we age. Trader Joe's used to carry some good ones. I bet the bears in Tahoe would really love a fruitcake now since a lot of their food source burnt...maybe some are not in hibernation.
ReplyDeleteI love fruitcake too. Locally, you can get them at the Umpqua Valley Farmers Market from Linda at the Acre Yummy booth. While in Texas last week, I picked up one made by the Collin Street Bakery in Corsicana, Tx. (see CollinStreet.com). My bro-in-law treated us to some delicious Ya-Hoo! Texas Manor fruitcake (from Sherman, Tx). See https://www.yahoocake.com/
ReplyDeleteMy mother had a good recipe that I made every year when we lived in San Jose CA. A friend of ours loved it and so did my co-workers... Probably because it was aged in bourbon for weeks! After Jerry passed away, I stopped making it. Keep thinking I should give it a try again. I still have the tin mom used to store it in.
ReplyDeleteI love fruitcakes; they are indeed a memory. Our grandmother used to send us candied orange and grapefruit rinds. I sure didn't like them then, and don't think I'd like them today.
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