Quick Fruitcake

Recipe by PJ Hamel

Fruitcake... or fruit bread? This quick and easy batter bread is packed with fruit and nuts, but is less sweet and very mildly spiced, unlike traditional fruitcakes. This is a great cake to bake if you feel obliged, by the holiday spirit, to have a fruitcake in the house.

Prep
10 mins
Bake
1 hr 15 mins to 1 hr 20 mins
Total
1 hr 25 mins
Yield
one 9" x 5" loaf
Quick Fruitcake

Instructions

Prevent your screen from going dark as you follow along.
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 5" loaf pan.

  2. Place the butter, granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder, salt, and vanilla in a bowl, and beat till smooth.

  3. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

  4. Add the flour, stirring to combine.

  5. Stir in the undrained crushed pineapple.

  6. Stir in the fruits, nuts, and candied cherries.

  7. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top.

  8. Sprinkle with coarse white sparkling sugar, if desired.

  9. Bake the cake for 60 minutes, then tent it with aluminum foil. Bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

  10. Remove the cake from the oven, and after 20 minutes loosen its sides, and turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool.

  11. Cool the cake completely before slicing.

Tips from our Bakers

  • For 30-minute fruitcake cupcakes: Prepare the cake batter according to the recipe instructions, and scoop a heaping 3 tablespoons of batter into the wells of a baby bundt pan (a jumbo cookie scoop heaped with batter works well here) — you'll be baking another batch, so about half the batter will remain. Bake the cakes for 15 to 18 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center of one comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a rack, and after 5 minutes turn the cakes out onto the rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining batter. Yield: 22 to 24 cakes.
  • Candied cherries can be found at most supermarkets or you can learn how to make your own with our DIY Candied Cherries recipe.