Fruitcakes, rum cakes, and other holiday treats - a timeline

photo by TEP

A pal asked me recently, when is the best time to make holiday desserts? I asked for clarification, because I wanted to make sure I understood the question. It turns out the question was really about when to make holiday desserts/treats that require some time to "age", "settle" or absorb flavors such as  fruit cakes, bourbon balls and rum balls.  I replied that it depended on the intended timeframe to consume the item.  I suggested that the time to prepare such items in time for consumption at Thanksgiving was in late September and the timeframe for Christmas was late October, early November at the latest. This would allow the flavors to be fully absorbed before serving the food to others.



image courtesy of she knows

Growing up, fruitcakes were favored by my parents and disliked by my sister and me . After picking apart a slice of cake one too many times, my mother stopped offering fruitcake to my sister and me. Frankly, the candied fruit was too much for me as a child. It wasn't until I was an adult that a coworker's mom introduced me to her Jamaican rum cake that I reconsidered holiday fruitcake.

In my adolescence my mother began making rum and bourbon balls. The balls were made in  November and then stored in separate containers and not served until closer to Christmas.

photo by TEP

Several years after  graduating from college, I called my mother and asked for the rum and bourbon ball recipe. A few days later a letter arrived in the mail with the handwritten  recipe tucked inside. Initially, I made both rum and bourbon balls.

Today, I primarily make bourbon balls - mostly because it is easier for me to access the bourbon I use versus the over proof rum I like to use.  I keep the treat on hand primarily for guests and I sometimes make bourbon and rum balls for holiday gifts. One recipient fondly referred to the treat as "goofy balls" and would mail his empty tin to me in February in hopes that I would refill it and send back the following holiday season.

My pal asked me for the rum/bourbon ball recipe. I suggested checking allrecipes and other recipe website for the recipe as my mother now considers her modifications to the original to recipe to be a 'family secret'.  Some holiday seasons we have actually three-way  phone discussions about modifications to the  recipe or preferred spirits to use in the recipe.

image courtesy of 'Academe de Cuisine

 
I've checked the calendar- this is the last weekend I can make bourbons balls that will be "ready" in time for Christmas.

Do you make holiday treats? If yes, what's your favorite?






Be well,

Technicolor girl

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