JUBILEE FRUITCAKE

Ju.DLao isn’t called the Fruitcake Queen for nothing. She singlehandedly — perhaps with a few other talented Filipino bakers — broke the reputation that fruitcakes once had of being the most recycled edible Christmas gift in the country. Of American origin and using ingredients that Filipinos are not totally used to eating, fruitcakes in general did not satisfy the Filipino taste. People liked to give them away for Christmas because they looked good and festive especially when packaged beautifully, but would recycle them and eventually give them away when they receive the same.

Not until Ju.D Lao experimented on them in her own kitchen and perfected the formula that catered to the Filipino taste. It was in 1975 when, inspired by the brandied flavor of European fruitcakes, the hobby baker decided to create a version of fruitcakes that Filipinos would love. She did not stop until she hit the perfect blend of fresh butter, glazed cherries, walnuts, raisins, orange peel, dates, honey and brandy. When she felt that it was finally right, she produced a batch that she gave away to family and friends just for them to try. She did not think of marketing them just yet, as she simply wanted to know if her fruitcakes did hit the spot.

Her seal of approval came when word spread about her fruitcakes and a clamor to buy them came. She heeded the clamor and made them available for sale, and thus embarked on her journey to decades of fruitcake making and selling from her Greenmeadows base. From her Classic Fruitcake, which is studded with glazed cherries, orange peel, dates, raisins and walnuts and aged to perfection using the finest brandy, she went on to develop three other variants — Ju.D Blue (a rich, dark fruitcake made with Blue Mountain Coffee, fruit glacé and walnuts and aged with Kahlua coffee liquor); Golden Fruitcake (a light honey fruitcake made with juicy golden apricots, red cranberries, walnuts, and a hint of candied ginger); and Coffee Prune Cake (a dark fruitcake made only with prunes, walnuts, and Kahlua coffee liquor).

Ju.D Lao also got to develop two types of festive cookies — Chewy Chewkies (chewy fruitcake cookies made with fruit glacé, raisins, walnuts, and just a touch of brandy); and Ginger Cookies (made with honey, young ginger, golden apricots and juicy red cranberries). Both enjoy good sales along with the fruitcakes. Delectably chewy and baked just right, they come with generous toppings (which can also be called fillings) that burst with flavor and crunch to the bite.

Time really does fly, and now Ju.D Lao is celebrating the 50th anniversary of her fruitcakes. Yes, it has been 50 years since she first offered her fruitcakes, and she is marking the milestone with a special Jubilee Fruitcake. She packed it with lots of healthy ingredients, including cranberries, prunes, walnuts, honey and fresh orange, and aged it with cherry brandy. It is an idea that she has toyed around since 2022, and the Fruitcake Queen could not be happier with the result. It is available this Christmas and will eventually become one of her standard products. Initial sales has shown that it is very well accepted by customers, a lot of whom are repeat customers who order her fruitcakes annually, and she is encouraged by it.

Sealed in a special plastic and packaged in a golden box, the Jubilee Fruitcake is a great edible gift to offer family, friends and loved ones this Christmas.