Here is a ‘keeper’ recipe for yummy fruitcake cookies. They are perfect for the holidays.

Fruitcake: Love ‘em or leave ‘em?

Probably a majority would pick choice No. 2. Just the thought of fruitcake-anything makes them turn up their nose. The “love ‘ems” enjoy the sweet, perhaps liquor laced cake.

My grandmother was a tee-totaler, who would not even a smidgen of bourbon or rum in her fruitcakes. Hers were the old-timey dark fruit cakes loaded with everything from candied cherries to citron. The addition of citron was not my favorite. I did like the cherries.

My late husband’s grandmother did not drink either, but she soaked those cheesecloth-wrapped cakes in either rum or bourbon.

Some Christmases past, I discovered a fruitcake cookie that fit my tastebuds, and my husband liked them, too. We munched on those all the holiday season. Most of our friends declined to try them, but that was OK. We had more for us to enjoy until my late mother hit our stash. They were her favorite.

Thanks to a church friend, I have found a lighter fruitcake cookie that is a keeper. Tracey Blease of Biloxi graciously shared her recipe with me and this column. Her late mother made these cookies, and I think we made a dent in her boxes of holiday baked goodies at Thanksgiving.

My recipe is heavier and darker than Blease’s, but both are good and keep well in airtight containers.

Naomi Judd, yes, the singer, is the creator of my fruitcake cookies. I stumbled on the recipe in an old Woman’s World magazine. It is a keeper for those who like candied cherries and do not care for citron.

Since there is still time to bake before Christmas, I thought I would share these two cookie recipes with you readers. They do not require much time to make. The hardest part of Judd’s and my recipe is mixing the stiff dough.

Even if fruitcake is not a favorite, these two cookie recipes may surprise you. These are just different versions of old-time fruitcakes. Yes, mine has a bit of whiskey in the cookies. Not much, just for flavor. Blease’s recipe uses wine.

Fruitcake cookies

1/2 cup butter

1 1/3 cups light brown sugar

4 eggs

1/4 cup buttermilk

3 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 pound mixed fruitcake fruit

1/2 pound candied cherries

2 cups chopped nuts

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup wine

Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in milk.

In another bowl, sift flour, soda and spices.

In another bowl, put fruit and nuts; dust with enough flour so they do not stick. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Add vanilla and wine.

In large bowl, put half of fruit mixture, then butter mixture and then the rest of the fruit. Mix well.

Drop by teaspoonfuls on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 300 degrees until light brown, about 20 minutes. These may be frozen and kept frozen for a month.

Note: First batches take 20 minutes. The last couple of batches take 15 to 18 minutes. – Recipe submitted by Tracey Blease

Naomi Judd’s Texas Lizzies

3 cups chopped walnuts

3 cups chopped pecans

1 package (15 ounces) golden raisins

1 1/4 cups dark raisins

16 ounces red and/or green candied or glace cherries

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature

1 pound light brown sugar

4 eggs

1/2 cup whiskey, divided

In bowl of electric mixer on medium speed, beat butter and brown sugar 2 minutes or until blended. Beat in eggs, 1 at a time. Beat in 1/2 flour-spice mixture and whiskey. Stir in nut-fruit mixture until blended.

On parchment paper-lined baking sheet, drop rounded tablespoonfuls of dough 2 inches apart. Bake 10 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned. Let cool on baking sheet 1 minute. Remove cookies to cooling racks. Let cool completely. – Recipe by Naomi Judd

Note: For more flavorful, tender cookies, place the raisins and candied cherries in the whisky and let sit 10 minutes. Drain and reserve the whiskey, then prepare recipe as directed.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to my readers

This story was originally published December 19, 2021 at 12:00 AM.