I’ve never been a fruitcake fan, but I do remember watching Granny & my great aunt Willie putting them together every year around this time. My older cousin likes them & still bakes them every year. I despised the candied fruit. 🤢
I love this story & the time you got to spend with your mom. She’s beautiful! ❤️❤️❤️
When I was a student at UGA in the mid-70’s, Truman Capote read A Christmas Memory one evening. When he first started speaking, there were titters. He said, “You’ll get used to my voice”. He was right—and it was wonderful.
Loved this story of your long years of bonding with your mother over baking a fruit cake! Years go I made a fruit cake recipe I thought sounded much like the one in Truman Capote’s, A Christmas Memory. The cakes were dense and exoticly delicious! You’ve inspired me to attempt that cake again! Thank you!! You are an inspiration to me. BTW it turns out we were in Italy at the same time. I was in the Florence area for 14 days. I came home with Covid! Ugh! It took me a long time to recover and this was my third dance with that illness. Oh well! Take care.
Thanks for the recipes! I made an English plum pudding last year. Looks like it is back to fruit cake this year. I love that we can use figs, pears, and persimmons from our own place---that is if Rudolph and the rest of the reindeer don't eat it all! I may have to cheat on the blackberry wine, but I do have blackberry juice! I agree with you. Older faces have so much to say, without saying a word!
Visiting with my grandparents, as a child, I remember the process of making the cakes and I remember the fruitcake stored under the bed where I slept. I thought it strange to have cake wrapped in dishcloths under a bed. I remember the strong smell of the alcohol. (I never saw my grandparents drink alcohol). My brother and I got into the extra jellied fruit, once - that was enough.
At Kroger the other day, I was looking for dried cherries and the produce manager thought I was looking for fruitcake cherries. He said the cherries are hard to get, now. I thought that strange for the south.
My daughter and I share a love for Truman Capote's short stories. Maybe some day we will attempt a cake! I should add, your beautiful cake looks nothing like those dense bricks of cake stored under the bed until Christmas!
I’m inspired now. The one kid that likes fruitcake is coming home for Christmas.
I love these old recipes. I have my grandmother’s copy of Mrs. Dull’s cookbook - the directions for her cakes say “Bake as any cake,” implying any fool knows how to bake a cake! It’s become a punchline around here.
Loved this story about you and your mother working together in the kitchen to make the fruit cakes while catching up on family and community news. It reminded me of cooking with my mother in Ohoopee. It's so much more than cooking. It's an experience!
Also, we loved your story about the white dog last week and shared it with many folks who came by the house at Thanksgiving. Thank you for keeping storytelling alive!
One of these years I will make a fruit cake with all those wonderful suggested fruits and nuts: mango, papaya, pistachios, etc. -- maybe even this year. Thanks for the inspiration! Meanwhile, read Lilian Smith's "Memory of a Large Christmas" -- one of my favorite books ever and most favorite Christmas story. Truman Capote's comes next. Happy holidays to you, Janisse, and all your readers!
That cake, so pretty on its glass plate with natural garnishes, looks NOTHING like the gooey things in boxes sold in catalogs. I might could be coaxed to eat this fruitcake! P.S. Your mom is indeed beautiful. And you're so fortunate to still have her, and have long afternoon baking dates together. I miss my mom and would love to spend an afternoon making her three special kinds of Christmas cookies with her.
Thank you for this wonderful column and say hello to Mom for me. Maybe one day I'll taste one of her or your fruitcake. I'm the cook, but not the baker in our family, so this is a dish I never have attempted, though I can pump out a decent apple pie if pressed. Have a good holiday season. g2
Your mama is beautiful.
Love the picture of your mom! And I love that Truman Capote story!
Beautiful story, beautiful cake and something special for the winter solstice ❤️
Give me some warning the next time you're coming to town
I’ve never been a fruitcake fan, but I do remember watching Granny & my great aunt Willie putting them together every year around this time. My older cousin likes them & still bakes them every year. I despised the candied fruit. 🤢
I love this story & the time you got to spend with your mom. She’s beautiful! ❤️❤️❤️
You're forgiven for not being a fruitcake fan, LOL. :)
When I was a student at UGA in the mid-70’s, Truman Capote read A Christmas Memory one evening. When he first started speaking, there were titters. He said, “You’ll get used to my voice”. He was right—and it was wonderful.
I had to go see what you were talking about.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atPaVIilEqk
Loved this story of your long years of bonding with your mother over baking a fruit cake! Years go I made a fruit cake recipe I thought sounded much like the one in Truman Capote’s, A Christmas Memory. The cakes were dense and exoticly delicious! You’ve inspired me to attempt that cake again! Thank you!! You are an inspiration to me. BTW it turns out we were in Italy at the same time. I was in the Florence area for 14 days. I came home with Covid! Ugh! It took me a long time to recover and this was my third dance with that illness. Oh well! Take care.
Thanks for the recipes! I made an English plum pudding last year. Looks like it is back to fruit cake this year. I love that we can use figs, pears, and persimmons from our own place---that is if Rudolph and the rest of the reindeer don't eat it all! I may have to cheat on the blackberry wine, but I do have blackberry juice! I agree with you. Older faces have so much to say, without saying a word!
I liked the mention of the Truman Capote Christmas story. I first heard it read aloud. He also had one titled The Thanksgiving Guest.
I'll check out the Thanksgiving story.
Visiting with my grandparents, as a child, I remember the process of making the cakes and I remember the fruitcake stored under the bed where I slept. I thought it strange to have cake wrapped in dishcloths under a bed. I remember the strong smell of the alcohol. (I never saw my grandparents drink alcohol). My brother and I got into the extra jellied fruit, once - that was enough.
At Kroger the other day, I was looking for dried cherries and the produce manager thought I was looking for fruitcake cherries. He said the cherries are hard to get, now. I thought that strange for the south.
My daughter and I share a love for Truman Capote's short stories. Maybe some day we will attempt a cake! I should add, your beautiful cake looks nothing like those dense bricks of cake stored under the bed until Christmas!
I’m inspired now. The one kid that likes fruitcake is coming home for Christmas.
I love these old recipes. I have my grandmother’s copy of Mrs. Dull’s cookbook - the directions for her cakes say “Bake as any cake,” implying any fool knows how to bake a cake! It’s become a punchline around here.
Loved this story about you and your mother working together in the kitchen to make the fruit cakes while catching up on family and community news. It reminded me of cooking with my mother in Ohoopee. It's so much more than cooking. It's an experience!
Also, we loved your story about the white dog last week and shared it with many folks who came by the house at Thanksgiving. Thank you for keeping storytelling alive!
One of these years I will make a fruit cake with all those wonderful suggested fruits and nuts: mango, papaya, pistachios, etc. -- maybe even this year. Thanks for the inspiration! Meanwhile, read Lilian Smith's "Memory of a Large Christmas" -- one of my favorite books ever and most favorite Christmas story. Truman Capote's comes next. Happy holidays to you, Janisse, and all your readers!
Will do, Linda, will do. Happy holidays to you!
That cake, so pretty on its glass plate with natural garnishes, looks NOTHING like the gooey things in boxes sold in catalogs. I might could be coaxed to eat this fruitcake! P.S. Your mom is indeed beautiful. And you're so fortunate to still have her, and have long afternoon baking dates together. I miss my mom and would love to spend an afternoon making her three special kinds of Christmas cookies with her.
Want to share those cookie recipes? How about on your SS?
Thank you for this wonderful column and say hello to Mom for me. Maybe one day I'll taste one of her or your fruitcake. I'm the cook, but not the baker in our family, so this is a dish I never have attempted, though I can pump out a decent apple pie if pressed. Have a good holiday season. g2
I'll be hoping for a slice of your apple pie.