Do you love making Christmas Cookies? I sure do and one of my favorites over the years has been these Best Ever Fruitcake Cookies. If Christmas can be put into cookie-form, then it’s totally this recipe! How incredibly delicious!!
Making these ahead of time only ensures that they get better with time. By always freezing my cookies I can make them well in advance and have them ready for any situation or gift-giving.
I have a whole post on 26 Freezable Christmas Cookie Recipes that you can enjoy also and our new Hot Chocolate Cookies, Best Rugelach, Peanut Butter Blossoms, Date Pinwheel Cookies, or Butter Pecan Cookies all are simply delicious!!
This is an easy drop cookie recipe too. There is no added rum or bourbon to these cookies so everyone will enjoy them. There are red and green cherries, raisins, and Brazil nuts to make these cookies fantastic. They turn out with lightly browned edges and chewy yet light and fluffy interiors.
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I have had this recipe for many, many years. Thinking back I believe I got it when I was doing cookie exchanges back in the 1990’s when I was nursing.
It is written out on a pretty little card but I am not 100% sure who I received it from. Anyway, it has been a recipe that I have made many times.
INGREDIENTS
- raisins
- candied cherries (red and green are pretty)
- 1 cup candied pineapple, coarsely chopped
- Brazil nuts
- Golden Crisco shortening
- White sugar
- Egg
- Vanilla
- Almond extract
- All-purpose flour
- Baking soda
- Salt
I see that Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa has a fruitcake cookie but it is very different from this one. Hers are rolled and sliced and have different ingredients.
Ours tastes like a really good fruitcake, nothing nasty here. Just a wonderful candied fruit and nut combination. I love that this recipe uses Brazil nuts, you don’t find that in holiday baking very often.
Candied Fruit
Look at how pretty the candied dry fruit is. That screams Christmas to me right away!! The Best Ever Fruitcake Cookies have to be added to your cooking baking list.
Not only are they easy but for many, they bring back a flood of memories as this vintage recipe has been around for a long time.
Simple ingredients and easy prep will lead you to make these cookies again and again.
Have you been a fruitcake fan but don’t like to make it? These cookies will fit the bill and have you loving how easy they are too.
How to Make Easy Fruitcake Cookies?
It is just a few easy steps. In a large bowl mix the fruits together with the nuts and then add 1/2 the flour. Cream the shortening with the sugar using an electric mixer on medium speed and then add the egg and vanilla along with the almond extract.
Next, the dry ingredients, add the flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir the flour mixture into the fruit mixture and mix well.
Using a 1 ” cookie scoop if you have one, drop the cookies onto a lined or greased baking sheet. I like to use parchment paper. Then bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until golden brown.
Let them cool on wire racks and once cooled put them in sealed containers and enjoy or freeze. These are the best easy made cookies for the holidays!
They have perfect texture and flavoring. Crispy, crunchy, and chewy, these cookies will be a hit with young and old.
How To Store Fruitcake Cookies
If I know the cookies will be eaten up quickly then I store them in an air-tight container at room temperature, if longer then in the refrigerator. If I want to have them made ahead I will freeze them in layers with wax paper in between. They will be good frozen for 2-3 months.
I love the retro-ness of these cookies. This would be something that grandma would serve you when you come over for the holidays. She would have the cocoa hot and the cookies ready!!
If you don’t like fruitcake I bet you love these! They are similar but yet oh so much better. They will last up to 2 weeks in a sealed container but in most households, they will only last a few days!!
Happy Holidays everyone!!
Pin it HERE!!
Best Ever Fruitcake Cookies
Video
Ingredients
- 1 cup raisins
- 1 cup candied cherries red and green are pretty, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup candied pineapple coarsely chopped
- 1 cup Brazil nuts coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup golden Crisco shortening
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1/2 tsp. almond extract
- 1 1/4 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
Instructions
- Combine fruit and nuts and 1/2 the flour, and mix well.
- Cream the shortening and sugar, and add the egg and flavoring.
- Beat on medium speed with an electric mixer until light and creamy.
- Stir in fruit mixture and remaining flour, baking soda, and salt and mix well.
- Drop onto parchment lined or greased baking sheet using a 1" scoop and bake at 350F for 10-12 min. Let cool on cooling racks.
Comments & Reviews
Debbie Smith says
Just made these this morning for a gift. They turned out great for me. Thank you for the recipe.
Tara Noland says
So glad you loved them, you are welcome!!
Randy says
I don’t know what went wrong but I followed the recipe exactly and they did not turn out like the picture. They were very crumbly and didn’t spread at all. Very disappointed. I have made fruitcake cookies every yr. but lost my recipe and tried this one.
Tara Noland says
Are you sure you didn’t miss an ingredient, even an expert chef can leave something out by mistake? No one has had this issue that I know of before.
Brigitte says
This was a-lot of fun to make ,bake and it tastes better than a fruit cake!
Montréal,Qc Canada
Tara Noland says
Agreed, way better than a fruitcake. Thanks! Happy Holidays!!
Karen Reynolds says
Too sweet for my sweet tooth. I would add half of the fruit
Robin R Church says
Can you use vanilla in place of almond extract? Not a fan of almond extract.
Tara Noland says
Absolutely you can, enjoy!!
Rose says
Just made them deelish!!
desilets says
esce que je pet metre beurre au lieu de crisco dore merc i
Tara Noland says
Oui! Merci!
Lisa Welch says
I have a recipe for these that my grandmother passed down. I know her recipe dates from at least the 1940s but is likely much, much older because she got it from a woman who had been baking them for decades before that. The only differences between yours and hers is that hers calls for butter and walnuts, not shortening and Brazil nuts and hers makes 12 dozen. I may try yours because I love them too much to have 12 dozen of them in my house!
Tara Noland says
LOL, I hope they turn out well for you!! Happy Holidays!!
Linda says
Can you use cinnamon and nutmeg instead of almond extract? Also how long should dough or cookie balls be chilled and how big should the balls be? Could you put this in a square pan (not sure what size), bake it and cut into squares? Thanks
Linda
Tara Noland says
You can add whatever flavorings you would like to the cookies. Store them in the fridge for 1-2 hours. The balls are about a heaping tablespoon. Happy Holidays and Happy Baking!!
Dee says
I love fruitcake but my family hates it. We have it every year when we decorate the tree (it’s tradition!). This year I made these instead- they were a HUGE hit. The kids loved them! The only change I made is that I soaked the raisins in brandy. We now have a recipe everyone loves, thank you!
Tara Noland says
That is awesome, thanks for sharing with me! Happy Holidays!!
Louanne says
Can you use brown sugar instead of white?
Tara Noland says
I haven’t tried them with brown sugar so I am not sure what the end result would be? It may affect the color, flavor, or texture of the cookie.
DeLoris Musick says
I am a digital scrapbooker. I want to design a page with a picture of Fruitcake Cookies. May I have your permission to use your photo? I will give your site the credit for it. I have made these sooo many decades ago, I don’t have a picture of them.
Tara Noland says
Hi DeLoris, yes you can use the picture with credit, thanks for asking! I hope you make them again! Cheers!
DeLoris Musick says
Thank you soooo much! I looked it up this year and it would cost $40 to buy the ingredients. My recipe calls for 1lb of this and 1 lb of that! LOL I need to cut it in half – huh?
Thanks again!
DeLoris
Leeann Smith says
I made these cookies yesterday, and they are delicious. My husband loved them which tells me a lot since he doesn’t comment on food too often. As recommended by a reviewer, I chilled the dough so that the cookies would not spread. Using a tablespoon scoop, I tapped them down a little with the bottom of a glass. They came out of the oven perfect. I rate them five stars!
Tara Noland says
So glad you both enjoyed them!! They are one of our favorites too!
Pamela Robinson says
I absolutely love fruitcake AND the cookies! I also love nuts so I would also add chopped pecans & a few English walnuts to the battery. Then I’d put half butter & half shortening. Of course I would double the recipe also & cool the dough beforehand.
Tara Noland says
I love that you are making them your own! Enjoy!!
Scott says
My first year making these was last year and i ended up making several batches instead of one. Every year i make goodie boxes for friends neighbours and odds and ends people…as i like to call them..well much to my dismay..my 4 adult children found these and by the time they were finished my stash was greatly dimished. I swear i am gonna lock my freezor!!! Lol. These are so bery good. I have even made some other times of the year. I am a big fruitcake fan. I will eat any of it. Thank you for this recipe!
Tara Noland says
So glad you liked them Scott and that your family does too. They seem to be a cookie that is made year-round although I have only made them at the holidays. Enjoy!!
Sharon says
Can coconut oil be substituted for the golden crisco?
Tara Noland says
I have never tried that so I honestly can’t advise.
Peggy Ward says
I love fruitcake. Cannot wait to make these. Sounds yummy. So glad to use Crisco as I hate butter. Never use it.
Lapellya Jones says
I love fruitcake!! I just want you to know I absolutely love these cookies!!! They are amazing!!
Tara Noland says
They seem to be a real winner, I am so glad you like them. We really do also!
Lori Belcour says
Fabulous recipe. Used margarine instead of shortening. They are delicious!
Tara Noland says
So glad you liked them!! Happy Holidays!!
Cheryl says
I just made these cookies and they are delicious! Perfect for the holidays. We love the Brazil nuts in them too. Thank you Tara this is a keeper!
Tara Noland says
So glad you liked them!! Happy Holidays!!
Cheryl says
I just made these cookies and they turned out fantastic. Delicious and screaming Christmas & Peter likes the Brazil nuts in them. Thanks Tara this is a keeper! 😋
Krista says
Made these this weekend- with margarine- and they turned out perfectly. The almond flavour is a nice touch. This will become one of my regular recipes moving forward (and that doesn’t happen often). Thank you so much for this one… will check out more of your posts.
Tara Noland says
So glad you liked these! Many people make them year-round. We have our ingredients and they are slated to be made soon. Cheers!