Fruitcake Alternative

[Lindacakes]

I just got back from a trip to Italy where I acquired some candied peel -- really good candied peel, lemon and orange.

I want to do something with this peel to really set it off, I don't want to bury it in a fruitcake, particularly not a dark fruitcake.

Panettone is one possibility, except that one of my Christmas traditions is the purchase of a particularly good one.

I have made Craig Claiborne's Black Walnut and Ginger Fruitcake with great success and am considering using this recipe with the peel and perhaps pecans and golden raisins.

I've also thought of sugar cookies with chunks of lemon and orange in them.

Anyone have ideas?

[pastrygirl]

Dipping in chocolate is always an option. One of my favorite holiday cookies is leckerli - a spiced honey cookie with candied citrus: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/leckerli

[Kerry Beal]

I second the idea of chocolate dipping. Another option would be to use it in a nice nougat.

[Edward J]

Florentines.

Make your own peel, I've been doing this for a couple of years now. Flavour and texture between home made and commercial is like night and day

[janeer]

Chocolate dipping, yes. I also love a good stollen.

[andiesenji]

I second Janeer's vote for stollen.

I like stollen better than panettone because of the somewhat denser crumb.

I used the same recipe for decades and was quite happy with it, however a couple of years ago I made

THIS ONE

from Betsy Oppenneer and found it to be superior to my old recipe.

This recipe makes TWO generous loaves.

The only substitutions I made was the use of Agave syrup instead of honey and I used the Splenda/sugar baking mix in the filling and did not put powdered sugar on the top.

[baroness]

Panforte

[Panaderia Canadiense]

I'd be very tempted to make mini tart shells, pack them with the rind, then drizzle chocolate overtop.

[djyee100]

One of the best desserts I ever ate at a restaurant: A compote of candied citrus peel, along with poached fresh and dried winter fruits in simple syrup, served over little scoops of very sweet sorbets. Very colorful and beautiful with the fruits shining like jewels. I remember poached fresh kumquats in the compote. The bitterness of the peels and kumquats set off the sorbets, and made this dessert special.

Edited November 23, 2011 by djyee100 (log)

[Lindacakes]

Thank you everyone for your thoughtful replies and interesting ideas.

I think I'm going to go with the stollen. I didn't make fruitcake this year, I needed a rest, and I think my fans are disappointed. I really like the idea of being able to freeze the stollen. I am also a big fan of the idea that Andisenji used recipe X for years until she found THIS ONE. I love that, love that. I hadn't heard of Betsy Oppeneer before and now I want her book on celebration breads.

Questions for Andisenji -- do you soak your fruit in the rum or the orange juice? Have you ever tried the almond paste option?

I also really like the idea of a fruit compote over sorbet . . . I have a big honker of a candied citron hanging around the house and I think poached candied citron over a sorbet would be pretty charming.

And yes, homemade candied peel is the best but the candied orange slices I brought back are really, really good. As is the lemon peel -- the lemons on the Amalfi Coast are different, larger, with thicker peels.

Thanks again!

[djyee100]

If you have a little leftover peel after the stollen...I remembered this one when I was flipping thru some old pix on my computer. Panforte Ice Cream, from David Lebovitz's The Perfect Scoop. Candied citrus peel, cinnamon, cloves, honey, nutmeg, almonds.

This blog has an adapted recipe. I reduced the cloves to 1/8 tsp (I'm not fond of cloves). Here:

http://www.houseboateats.com/2009/12/december-flavored-ice-cream.html

I should make this one for the holidays myself.

[andiesenji]

Thank you everyone for your thoughtful replies and interesting ideas.

I think I'm going to go with the stollen. I didn't make fruitcake this year, I needed a rest, and I think my fans are disappointed. I really like the idea of being able to freeze the stollen. I am also a big fan of the idea that Andisenji used recipe X for years until she found THIS ONE. I love that, love that. I hadn't heard of Betsy Oppeneer before and now I want her book on celebration breads.

Questions for Andisenji -- do you soak your fruit in the rum or the orange juice? Have you ever tried the almond paste option?

I also really like the idea of a fruit compote over sorbet . . . I have a big honker of a candied citron hanging around the house and I think poached candied citron over a sorbet would be pretty charming.

And yes, homemade candied peel is the best but the candied orange slices I brought back are really, really good. As is the lemon peel -- the lemons on the Amalfi Coast are different, larger, with thicker peels.

Thanks again!

I usually don't soak the fruit because I use it soon after preparing it and it is still very moist. Occasionally I will spread the fruit on a tray and spritz it with peach brandy or calvados, neither is as heavy as rum. However, as a few of my friends are Muslim, I carefully mark the few that contain alcohol.

I rarely fill the stollen with almond paste, we tend to like it plain, but I will usually do one that is a gift to a friend who does like it.

Since I got the Thermomixer and making almond paste or marzipan is so easy, I can do a small batch without much effort.