Seasoning and Storing Fruitcake | Blue Flame Kitchen (2025)

How to Season and Store Fruitcakes

Did you know you have to season your homemade fruitcake before it is ready to eat? Seasoning helps to improve the flavour and texture. Follow our easy steps to make your fruitcake holiday ready.

“Seasoning,” also known as ripening or ageing, a fruitcake involves letting it mature in a cool, dark place for several weeks. While the process sounds strange, it’s a traditional technique meant to improve the flavour and texture of fruitcake.

Unseasoned fruitcake tends to be dry and crumbly, while seasoned fruitcake is easier to slice and has a more developed flavour and texture.

Some fruitcake recipes call for seasoning, while others do not. If you want to season a fruitcake that doesn’t call for it, be extra careful to watch for mould, as the fruitcake may not survive the room-temperature ageing period.

If your recipe says to season your fruitcake, here’s how to do it:
  1. Allow cakes to cool in pans on racks. When cooled, remove cakes from pans and remove parchment paper.
  2. Brush cakes generously with sweet sherry, brandy, rum, port, liqueur or fruit juice; do not use wine. Using fruit juice can increase the chances of your fruitcake going mouldy.
  3. Wrap each cake in several layers of cheesecloth and then in plastic wrap. Store the cakes in airtight containers in a cool dry place, but not in the refrigerator or freezer.
  4. Check carefully at least once a week, as rich, moist cakes mould very easily. If you see any mould, throw out the cake. Cutting off the mould and eating the rest of the cake is not a food-safe solution.
  5. If the cakes have not moistened and become uniformly heavy in two weeks, apply more liquor or fruit juice, wrap in clean cheesecloth and plastic wrap and put back into your airtight container. Repeat this until they are moist and heavy.
  6. If the cakes are too moist, remove them from the container and all wrapping. Allow them to stand at room temperature for 24 hours, then rewrap in plastic wrap and freeze. Do not continue seasoning.
  7. Dark cakes usually take 4 to 6 weeks to season; light cakes usually take 3 to 4 weeks to season. Do not freeze fruitcake before seasoning is complete.
  8. Once seasoned, store fruitcakes in the refrigerator or freezer.
Seasoning and Storing Fruitcake | Blue Flame Kitchen (2025)

FAQs

Seasoning and Storing Fruitcake | Blue Flame Kitchen? ›

Master the art of storage by tightly wrapping your fruitcake in parchment paper and foil. Store it in a cool, dark place, allowing the flavors to intensify.

How do you store fruitcake after baking? ›

Master the art of storage by tightly wrapping your fruitcake in parchment paper and foil. Store it in a cool, dark place, allowing the flavors to intensify.

What is the best way to store a rich fruit cake? ›

We recommend wrapping your fruitcake in a layer of plastic wrap followed by a layer of foil. Ensure your fruitcake and the foil do not contact one another. Then, place your wrapped cake in an airtight container and set that container in the freezer.

How long will fruitcake last unrefrigerated? ›

Fruitcake without alcohol won't last as long, however, its shelf life can still be maximized through proper storage techniques. Our fruitcake can last up to one month on your countertop, four months in the fridge, and six months in the freezer. Of course, all this depends on the effectiveness of your storage.

How do you store Grandma's fruitcake? ›

How should I serve and store my cake? Grandma's Fruitcake slices best when chilled. We recommend that you refrigerate your cake overnight or freeze it for a few hours before slicing with a Non Serrated Knife. Our fruitcakes have a 9 month shelf life.

How to season fruitcake? ›

If your recipe says to season your fruitcake, here's how to do it: Allow cakes to cool in pans on racks. When cooled, remove cakes from pans and remove parchment paper. Brush cakes generously with sweet sherry, brandy, rum, port, liqueur or fruit juice; do not use wine.

How to keep a fruit cake moist after baking? ›

After baking, wrap the cake up in parchment paper and a few layers of either foil or cling film and pop it in an airtight container to mature. Instead of feeding it with alcohol, it can be fed with either fruit juice such as orange or, cold tea.

Should homemade fruitcake be refrigerated? ›

For best quality, a fruit cake that is tightly wrapped with aluminum foil or saran warp can be stored for up to 1 month in a cool, dark pantry, 6 months in the refrigerator, and 12 months in a freezer. Check often for signs of spoilage, and if mold or off-odors develop, discard the cake.

How to moisten a dry fruitcake? ›

Formulate a cake soak: You can make a cake soak using simple syrup (equal parts sugar and water), evaporated milk, buttermilk, or a liqueur. With a wooden skewer or toothpick, pole holes in the cake. Then use a pastry brush to blot the liquid over the surface of the cake layers to moisten the cake.

How do you store and feed a fruitcake? ›

Fruitcake should be tightly wrapped and stored in a cool, dry place while aging. If you wrapped your cake in soaked cheesecloth, resoak the cloth once a week and age for six weeks to three months. Cakes simply wrapped in plastic wrap should be brushed with more alcohol every few days during the first two months.

Can you eat 10 year old fruitcake? ›

That said, even though a decades-old fruitcake might taste like a leather shoe, eating it probably won't make you dangerously sick.

What ingredient in fruitcake makes it last so long? ›

The trifecta of sugar, low moisture ingredients and some high-proof spirits make fruitcakes some of the longest-lasting foods in the world.

Why can fruitcake be kept for months without spoiling? ›

Low water activity is important because many microorganisms, including foodborne illness-causing bacteria, need moisture in order to reproduce. “In practical terms, this makes most fruitcakes extremely shelf stable, so they would be safe to eat for a long time – a really long time,” Chapman says.

What alcohol is good for fruit cake? ›

Other good choices of booze include brandy, rum, or whiskey. Feel free to use one or a mix of these to best complement your fruitcake. Once you've chosen the liquor, bake the cake, poke holes throughout the whole thing, and pour a few tablespoons of the alcohol over it. Or, you can brush the cake with the alcohol.

Does Claxton fruitcake need to be refrigerated? ›

For extended keeping, we advise placing the cakes in a refrigerator.

How do you store boiled fruitcake? ›

Remove parchment paper, flip cake, and allow to cool completely on the rack. Cake may be stored wrapped in foil and in an airtight container for up to 6 months.

What is the best container to store fruit cake? ›

Choose the Right Container: To keep your fruit cakes fresh, start by selecting an airtight container. Opt for food-grade containers or tins that provide a secure seal, preventing moisture and air from spoiling the cake.

Can you leave a fruit cake out overnight? ›

How long can cake sit out unrefrigerated? If your cake is frosted with buttercream, it will last covered at room temperature for up to four days. However, it is best to refrigerate cakes with other frostings such as cream cheese or ganache. A fully covered unfrosted cake will last for up to 2 days at room temperature.

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