Baker puts heart, soul  into abbey’s fruitcake

Whether it’s a deep-seated hatred, cold-hearted humor or blind affection, no other food prompts as visceral a reaction as fruitcake. It’s the gift that keeps getting re-gifted, a dish given wide berth at holiday dinner parties. It is the Brussels sprouts of the dessert world. For some though, it’s a luxurious treat, one with a heady aroma and dense filling. The task of baking this marginally beloved cake falls to the monks of Holy Cross Abbey.

A note indicates where to get fruitcakes for shipping out in the shipping room at the Holy Cross Abbey in Berryville, Va. on Tuesday, Nov. 13, 2012. The monks at the abbey have been baking and selling fruitcakes since the 1980s to support their monastery. Their busiest time of year is Christmas, when they get about 10,000 orders. They bake from January to September in order to allow at least six weeks of aging before shipping the fruitcakes out. (Barbara L. Salisbury/The Washington Times)

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