Melba's Jammin' wrote:

Julia, are you serious?



Maybe.
--Lia

Julia Altshuler wrote:

I can't help with the exact recipe, but I do have some sneaky advice.

Is there any way you could spend time in her home when she's not around?
Maybe when you're visiting and your husband takes her out shopping?
Snoop around her kitchen. Cookbooks tend to open straight to the page
with the recipe that's made a lot. Sometimes the recipe is clipped out
of the newspaper and taped to a cabinet or is on a file card. Look.

What if she works the recipe from memory?
You can get wireless webcams that are cheap and real small.
Then, you can just watch and see how she does it.
You might learn other interesting stuff, like where
she keeps household cash, etc. Maybe you can
catch her having an affair, then blackmail her into
giving you the recipe. Hope this helps. :-)

"The Goods" wrote in message ...
A little background he

My mother-in-law has made a lovely white fruitcake for years. In fact, it
was a country fair prize winner. For several years I have repeatedly asked
her for the recipe, especially because my oldest son (HER grandson) likes it
and I would like to have it to pass on to him (you know - "here's your
grandmother's beloved fruitcake recipe", etc.). Well, for reasons known
only to her, she just smiles (smirks?) and says nothing (ok, maybe there are
some issues here). Imagine my surprise when her other daughter-in-law (the
"favorite") announced to me recently that MIL gave her the recipe ages ago
(and no, I will not ask SIL for the recipe - more issues). Okay, I give up.

Does anyone have a recipe for a white fruitcake that meets the following
criteria:

- must be VERY moist
- must be full of bright colored fruit
- does NOT contain any nuts
- has no fancy topping, just the lightly browned top of the cake.

Thanks for any help. You may just avert a family crisis.

Jan


It would be a real shame to lose that recipe, if MIL kicks the bucket
without passing it on. My Mom died suddenly, and there are so many
recipes that were in her head, that I forgot to ask her to write out
for me (she would have done so willingly). It is a huge loss - to all
future generations.

-L.

On Fri, 12 Dec 2003 23:18:43 GMT, (j.j.)
wrote:

Hark! I heard "Peter Aitken" say:
"Laura" wrote in message
...

actually..I thought to myself upon reading it..'she buys it somewhere'!
just a thought..

Perhaps I am being too harsh, but I have always thought that refusing to
give someone a recipe, particularly a friend or family member, is
astoundingly petty and selfish. The only exception I can think of is if the
person who gave you the recipe asked you to promise not to give it out.
Otherwise it is really cheesy. It is hard for me to imagine having a life so
shallow and empty that having a "secret recipe" is so important.

I don't think you're harsh, Peter; you're exactly right IMO. I love
sharing recipes, new or old. When I have guests for dinner and make
something unusual, I type up a copy of the recipe for anyone who
wants it enough to ask...


There was a rather venomous discussion about witholding/giving out
recipes in alt.fan.miss-manners about a year ago. Boy oh boy, those
"polite" folks were wild!

I am of like mind with this group...recipes are to share -obviously,
recipes used as part of business or "protected" in some legal way may
not be - but otherwise, I find it great fun to exchange them. I
wouldn't hang around here if I did not feel that way.

Boron

The Goods wrote:

A little background he

My mother-in-law has made a lovely white fruitcake for years. In fact, it
was a country fair prize winner. For several years I have repeatedly asked
her for the recipe, especially because my oldest son (HER grandson) likes it
and I would like to have it to pass on to him (you know - "here's your
grandmother's beloved fruitcake recipe", etc.). Well, for reasons known
only to her, she just smiles (smirks?) and says nothing (ok, maybe there are
some issues here). Imagine my surprise when her other daughter-in-law (the
"favorite") announced to me recently that MIL gave her the recipe ages ago
(and no, I will not ask SIL for the recipe - more issues). Okay, I give up.



Okay, since SIL has managed to wrest the Sacred Recipe from
her, how old is your son, and is he old enough to ask her for it?
If she won't give it to him, he could ask her to leave it to him
in her will. That would fix her wagon! ;-)

gloria p

In article , The Goods wrote:


Does anyone have a recipe for a white fruitcake that meets the following
criteria:

- must be VERY moist
- must be full of bright colored fruit
- does NOT contain any nuts
- has no fancy topping, just the lightly browned top of the cake.

No, but I recall that Steingarten had what he claimed was a
miraculous white fruitcake recipe in _The Man Who Ate
Everything_, and since it's coming up on non-denominational
winter festival time, I'd like to say it's one of the top five
books on cooking (it isn't a cookbook) I've ever read,
being a fine combination of humor, obsession, and knowlege.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0375702024.

Good luck with the fruitcake recipe. Family politics are just as
puzzling as the more public kind, aren't they? I think the
person that said "she buys it somewhere" may be on to
something. See if you can find a local place that's known
for their fruitcake and you may strike something.

Mike Beede

In article , The Goods
wrote:


Does anyone have a recipe for a white fruitcake that meets the
following criteria:

- must be VERY moist
- must be full of bright colored fruit
- does NOT contain any nuts
- has no fancy topping, just the lightly browned top of the cake.

Unfortunately, I don't have such a recipe. We bake dark fruitcake with
fruit and nuts.

With a MIL like that, howver, my goal would be to bake an even better
white fruitcake than hers that you could present at the holidays, and I
would certainly not give her the recipe. (Smile sweetly and say
nothing.)

My suggestion...find the very richest white fruitcake batter recipe you
can (many good cookbooks have one), then omit the nuts if any, and
increase the quantities of the candied and dried fruits. Do include
white raisins (sultanas) and dried apricots, even if not called for.
Also tender glacéed orange and lemon peels (make your own if you have
to).

Make this cake the envy of your MIL.

Wayne

In article isuCb.329365$Dw6.1107655@attbi_s02, Julia Altshuler
wrote:

Melba's Jammin' wrote:

Julia, are you serious?

Maybe.
--Lia

Shame on you.
--
-Barb
www.jamlady.eboard.com
"If you're ever in a jam, here I am."

Melba's Jammin' typed:
In article isuCb.329365$Dw6.1107655@attbi_s02, Julia Altshuler
wrote:

Melba's Jammin' wrote:

Julia, are you serious?

Maybe.
--Lia

Shame on you.
--
-Barb
www.jamlady.eboard.com
"If you're ever in a jam, here I am."

Here's the BEST FRUITCAKE RECIPE ever used:

Fruitcake Recipe

1 cup water

1 cup sugar

4 large eggs

2 cups dried fruit

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup brown sugar

lemon juice

nuts

1 GALLON RUM...



Sample the Rum to check for quality. Take a large bowl. Check the Rum again to be
sure it is of the highest quality.

Pour one level cup and drink. Repeat.

Turn on the electric mixer; beat 1 cup butter in a large, fluffy bowl. Add 1
teaspoon sugar and beat again.

Make sure the rum is still OK. Cry another tup.

Turn off mixer. Break 2 legs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup of dried
fruit. Mix on the turner.

If the fried druit gets stuck in the beaterers, pry it loose with a drewscriver.
Sample the rum to check for tonsisticity.

Next, sift 2 cups of salt. Or something. Who cares? Check the rum.

Now sift the lemon juice and strain your nuts. Add one table. Spoon.
Of sugar or something. Whatever you can find. Grease the oven. Turn the cake tin
to 350 degrees. Don't forget to beat off the turner. Throw the bowl out of the
window. Check the rum again. Go to bed. Who the hell likes fruitcake anyway?

On Fri, 12 Dec 2003 22:35:59 GMT, "Peter Aitken"
wrote:

"Laura" wrote in message
...
actually..I thought to myself upon reading it..'she buys it somewhere'!
just a thought..

--

Laura


Perhaps I am being too harsh, but I have always thought that refusing to
give someone a recipe, particularly a friend or family member, is
astoundingly petty and selfish.

I agree with you but I'd rather that I was refused, than given a
recipe that was altered so mine didn't turn out quite as good. This
has been discussed here a few times. There are a few people in the
world who will change 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup etc. It's a strange way to
feel superior when someone says "mine just isn't as good as yours"

Gar

Wayne Boatwright wrote:
My suggestion...find the very richest white fruitcake batter recipe you
can (many good cookbooks have one), then omit the nuts if any, and
increase the quantities of the candied and dried fruits. Do include
white raisins (sultanas) and dried apricots, even if not called for.
Also tender glacéed orange and lemon peels (make your own if you have
to).

Make this cake the envy of your MIL.
Wayne

I basicly agree with Wayne. I'm not familiar with "white fruitcake"; mine
are dark. But anyway, instead of using mixed candied fruit (which has way
too much badly candied citrus peel), use a mixture of glacéed cherries,
that really sweet dried pineapple you can buy in bulk food bins, and other
assorted dried fruits (raisins, diced prunes, diced Turkish apricots,
"craisins", dates, etc.)

Best regards,
Bob

Gar wrote in message ...
On Fri, 12 Dec 2003 22:35:59 GMT, "Peter Aitken"
wrote:

"Laura" wrote in message
...
actually..I thought to myself upon reading it..'she buys it somewhere'!
just a thought..

--

Laura


Perhaps I am being too harsh, but I have always thought that refusing to
give someone a recipe, particularly a friend or family member, is
astoundingly petty and selfish.

I agree with you but I'd rather that I was refused, than given a
recipe that was altered so mine didn't turn out quite as good. This
has been discussed here a few times. There are a few people in the
world who will change 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup etc. It's a strange way to
feel superior when someone says "mine just isn't as good as yours"

Gar

Jeez, now that would be even sleazier!! It would be their just desserts
(pardon the pun) if the modified recipe turned out better.


--
Peter Aitken

Remove the crap from my email address before using.

Peter Aitken wrote:

Perhaps I am being too harsh, but I have always thought that refusing to
give someone a recipe, particularly a friend or family member, is
astoundingly petty and selfish.

No, you are not being harsh. It has never happened to me, but I'll
geared, now, to very politely and privately say "well, I find that
astoundingly petty and selfish" if I am every refused.
blacksalt
who tries to be blunt about bad behavior, and has actually made a couple
of friends that way.

Gar wrote:

On Fri, 12 Dec 2003 22:35:59 GMT, "Peter Aitken"
wrote:

"Laura" wrote in message
...
actually..I thought to myself upon reading it..'she buys it somewhere'!
just a thought..

--

Laura


Perhaps I am being too harsh, but I have always thought that refusing to
give someone a recipe, particularly a friend or family member, is
astoundingly petty and selfish.

I agree with you but I'd rather that I was refused, than given a
recipe that was altered so mine didn't turn out quite as good. This
has been discussed here a few times. There are a few people in the
world who will change 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup etc. It's a strange way to
feel superior when someone says "mine just isn't as good as yours"

Gar

I remember a telling 'life-lesson' regarding recipe jealousy. I was a
kid college student, invited to a get together with someone else's
sister. Everyone there was 10-20 years older than myself, and the women
were all basically stay at home mommies. I made a pecan pie, the recipe
of which I kick myself for losing, that had maple syrup in it. Every man
there complimented it, and no man complimented anything else (I didn't
hear a single compliment from any of the women), and after that I was
treated to glares and snubs from the women. I was already on the way to
becoming a professional woman, but that dose of domestic pettiness put a
match to my butt. No one asked for the recipe, either.
blacksalt

On Fri, 12 Dec 2003 12:52:38 GMT, "The Goods"
wrote:

A little background he

My mother-in-law has made a lovely white fruitcake for years. In fact, it
was a country fair prize winner. For several years I have repeatedly asked
her for the recipe, especially because my oldest son (HER grandson) likes it
and I would like to have it to pass on to him (you know - "here's your
grandmother's beloved fruitcake recipe", etc.). Well, for reasons known
only to her, she just smiles (smirks?) and says nothing (ok, maybe there are
some issues here). Imagine my surprise when her other daughter-in-law (the
"favorite") announced to me recently that MIL gave her the recipe ages ago
(and no, I will not ask SIL for the recipe - more issues). Okay, I give up.

Does anyone have a recipe for a white fruitcake that meets the following
criteria:

- must be VERY moist
- must be full of bright colored fruit
- does NOT contain any nuts
- has no fancy topping, just the lightly browned top of the cake.

This one has nuts and frosting, but you might be able to modify it...

Regards,
Tracy R.


@@@@@ Now You're Cooking! Export Format

Holiday White Fruitcake (McCall's)

desserts, fruit, xmas

sherry or brandy
----FRUIT MIXTURE----
1 pound blanched whole almonds
8 ounces candied red cherries (2 jars)
4 ounces candied green cherries (1 jar)
8 ounces candied citron (2 jars)
8 ounces diced candied pineapple (2 jars)
4 ounces diced candied orange peel (1 jar)
1/2 pound golden raisins
1/2 cup all-purpose flour; unsifted
----WHITE BATTER----
1 1/4 cups soft butter or margarine
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup sherry
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour; sifted
----TOPPING----
8 ounces almond paste (1 can)
candied cherries; for garnish
candied angelica; for garnish
----ICING----
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar; sifted
2 tablespoons butter or margarine; melted
1 1/2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon almond extract

Line a 10-inch tube pan: On a piece of brown paper, draw an 18-inch
circle and cut it out. Set pan in center of circle; draw around base
of pan and tube. With pencil lines outside, fold paper circle into
eighths. Snip off tip. Unfold circle. Cut along folds just to second
circle. Grease both the pan and paper well. Fit the paper, greased
side up, into tube pan.

Prepare fruit mixtu With a very sharp knife, coarsely cut up
almonds. Cut cherries in half. In a very large bowl, combine nuts,
fruits, and 1/2 cup unsifted flour; mix well. Preheat oven to 275
degrees F.

Make white batter: In large bowl of electric mixer, at medium speed,
beat butter until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating until light,
about 5 minutes. Add salt. Then add eggs, one at a time, beating after
each addition. Beat until light and fluffy. Mix the milk, 1/4 cup
sherry, and the almond extract. At low speed, alternately blend into
sugar-egg mixture the sifted flour (in fourths) and the milk and
sherry mixture (in thirds), beginning and ending with flour. Beat only
until blended. Pour batter over fruit mixture. With hands or spoon,
mix until well combined.

Turn into prepared tube pan, packing firmly. Bake cake 3 hours, or
until a cake tester inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in
pan one hour. Remove from pan; invert on rack and peel off paper. Cool
completely. Soak a large piece of cheesecloth in 1/3-cup sherry or
brandy. Use it to wrap fruitcake. Overwrap in plastic film or foil.
Store in refrigerator at least 4 weeks to develop flavor. Resoak
cheesecloth in booze as needed.

Before serving, if desired, decorate as follows: Between two sheets of
waxed paper, roll 1 (8-ounce) can almond paste into an 8-inch circle;
remove top sheet of paper. Invert almond paste onto top of cake;
remove paper. With sharp knife, trim edge. Press paste to cake.

Combine 1 1/2 cups sifted confectioner's sugar, 2 Tablespoons melted
butter or margarine, 1 1/2 Tablespoons milk, and 1/4 teaspoon almond
extract; mix until smooth. Spoon over almond paste. With small
spatula, smooth frosting, letting it drip down sides of cake.

Garnish the cake with candied cherries and angelica. Makes one 10-inch
tube cake.

Contributor: McCall's Magazine, date unknown


** Exported from Now You're Cooking! v5.63 **