For as long as I can remember, Boston Fruit Cookies have been a Christmas treat but this cookie is good any time of the year. This recipe comes to us from the kitchen of Nana Kissinger in Fayetteville, PA. We changed just a few things to bring out the flavor of Christmas.
Table of contents
Ways to Make Boston Fruit Cookies
In the original and most recipes you boil the raisins in water and reserve some of that water to add to the dough mixture. In our recipe, we added cranberries and soaked the raisins and cranberries in German Spiced Wine for 24 hours.
How to Store Boston Fruit Cookies
You can store your Boston Fruit Cookies in glass jars, plastic containers, or tins. Ensure any container that you use has an airtight seal to keep the cookies fresh. To keep your cookies fresher for a longer time, refrigerate or freeze them in a plastic airtight container or sealed plastic bags.
History of the Boston Fruit Cookie
The earliest recipe for Boston Fruit Cookies first appeared in an 1881 Detroit publication, The Household (of the Detroit Free Press): A Cyclopedia of Practical Hints of Modern Homes (2nd Edition). The recipe would go on to become the foundation of all other Boston Fruit Cookie recipes.
The Metropolitan City of Boston, Massachusetts
Boston is the capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States and the 24th-most populous city in the country. The city proper covers 48.4 square miles with a population of 675,647 in 2020, also making it the most populous city in New England.
A Brief History of Boston, Massachusetts
Prior to European colonization, modern-day Boston was originally inhabited by the indigenous Massachusett peoples. There were small Native communities throughout the area and they most likely moved between winter homes inland where hunting was plentiful, and summer homes along the coast where fishing and shellfish beds were plentiful.
European settlers arrived in what would become Boston in the early 1600s and many of the crucial events of the American Revolution occurred in or near Boston. In 1773, Parliament passed the Tea Act which prompted the Boston Tea Party, where a group of angered Bostonian citizens threw an entire shipment of tea sent by the East India Company into Boston Harbor.
In the 1820s, Boston’s population grew rapidly, and the city’s ethnic composition changed dramatically with the first wave of European immigrants. Irish immigrants dominated the first wave of newcomers with about 35,000 Irish settling in Boston.
Many architecturally significant buildings were built during the 20th century and transformed the city into the intellectual, technological, and political center we know today.
Tourism in Boston, Massachusetts
Boston is a very expensive city but it is well worth the extra cost to visit. The city offers some of the best food in the northeast and there are a ton of sights and entertainment.
The city offers both the new and the old, where cobbled-stone streets meet glass-enclosed shopping galleries, where The Freedom Trail landmarks stand beside cutting-edge restaurants and renowned performance theatres brush shoulders with trendy nightclubs.
The Cuisine of Boston, Massachusetts
Boston is known for, baked beans (hence the nickname “Beantown”), bulkie rolls, and various pastries. Boston cream pie is not a pie but a cake with custard filling. The origins are mysterious, but it is likely that antecedent cakes were made with either a sponge cake or pound cake.
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How to Make This Recipe for Boston Fruit Cookies
This recipe is time-consuming but worth the extra effort. The key to this recipe is the Spiced Wine. Be sure to soak your fruit in the wine for 24 hours prior to making these delicious cookies.
What You Will Need to Make Boston Fruit Cookies
Equipment
- 2 Glass Jars with Lids
- 1 Mixing Bowl
- 1Mixing Machine
- 1 Baking Sheet
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 cup vegetable shortening
- 3 large eggs
- 3 ½ cup flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 6 oz raisins, soaked in spiced wine or spiced rum
- 6 oz cranberries, soaked in spiced wine or spiced rum
- ½ cup raisin/cranberry juice, reserved from soaking the raisins and cranberries
- 1 tsp baking soda, dissolved into the raisin/cranberry juice
- 1 cup coconut, grated
- 1 ½ cup walnuts, chopped
How to Bake Boston Fruit Cookies
Time needed: 25 minutes
How to Bake Boston Fruit Cookies
- Mix Wet Ingredients
Cream sugar and shortening. Add in Large eggs and beat well.
- Mix in Dry Ingredients
Add in flour, salt, and soda dissolved in raisin/cranberry juice. Mix well.
- Add Fruit
Stir in raisins, cranberries, walnuts, and coconut.
- Drop and Bake
Drop by teaspoonfuls onto the cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 min.
You are going to love these cookies. The cranberries and spice wine make these cookies stand out from the usual Boston Fruit Cookie.
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Boston Fruit Cookies
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Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 cup vegetable shortening
- 3 large eggs
- 3 ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 6 oz raisins soaked in spiced wine or spiced rum
- 6 oz dried cranberries soaked in spiced wine or spiced rum
- ½ cup raisin/cranberry juice juice reserved from soaking the raisins and cranberries
- 1 tsp baking soda dissolved into the raisin/cranberry juice
- 1 cup shredded coconut sweetened grated
- 1 ½ cup walnuts chopped
Instructions
- Cream sugar and shortening. Add in Large eggs and beat well.1 ½ cup brown sugar, 1 cup vegetable shortening, 3 large eggs
- Add in flour, salt, and soda dissolved in raisin/cranberry juice. Mix well.3 ½ cup all-purpose flour, 1 tsp salt, ½ cup raisin/cranberry juice, 1 tsp baking soda
- Stir in raisins, cranberries, walnuts, and coconut.6 oz dried cranberries, 1 cup shredded coconut sweetened, 1 ½ cup walnuts, 6 oz raisins
- Drop by teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 10-12 min.
Nutrition
Other Recipes That Go Well With Boston Fruit Cookies
Photo Credits:
- By Taste The World Cookbook – Copyright 2022 All rights reserved.
- By Athan’s European Bakery – by https://www.facebook.com/athansbrighton/
- By rokker, CC BY 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=55180077
- By Ian Howard – Own work, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1697292
- By Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA – Boston – Old State House, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=82156206
- By Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA – Boston -Massachusetts State House, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=82156217
- By Vegasjon – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=34448114
- By King of Hearts – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=62981160
