5. Fill the pan and bake
- Spoon the batter into your prepared loaf or tube pan and smooth the top.
- Bake at 300°F for about 1½–2 hours, or until the top is golden and firm and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few moist crumbs.
Low-and-slow baking lets the fruit plump, the flavors meld, and the center cook through without burning the edges.
6. Cool completely
- Set the pan on a wire rack and let the cake cool completely in the pan before removing and slicing.
Cooling allows the crumb to set and makes the cake much easier to cut into neat slices; fruit cakes actually taste better the next day as the flavors settle.
Serving, storing, and tips
- Slice with a sharp serrated knife to glide through the dense fruit and nut mixture.
- Serve plain, with a smear of butter, or alongside coffee or tea as a holiday snack or dessert.
- Wrap the cooled cake tightly in plastic wrap or foil and store at room temperature or in the fridge; properly wrapped, it keeps well for several days and can even be made ahead for gifting.
If you want to lean even more “old-fashioned,” you can brush the cooled cake lightly with extra orange juice or a splash of your favorite spirit (like brandy or rum) and rewrap it to let the flavors deepen over time.
Conclusion and call to action
When you bake this Never-Fail Fruit Cake, you get that classic, old-fashioned holiday loaf loaded with fruit and nuts, but without any complicated steps or guesswork. Share it on your blog as the fruit cake that actually disappears from the platter, invite readers to rate the recipe, share which dried fruits they used, and tag you in photos of their festive loaves so this “don’t lose it” recipe becomes part of their yearly tradition too.