These Tropical Fruit and Rum cookies start out by soaking dried tropical fruit in flavourful rum, and just get even better from there!
Originally published October 28, 2013. Updated on 8/5/2021
Fruitcake may be a holiday season thing, but the general idea behind MY version of it can be be used year round, to make fantastic cookies.
As you may recall from my Gluten-Free Fruitcake Cookies, I like to use dried fruit - rather than glaceed - and soak it in alcohol.
The flavour and texture is so much better than traditional fruitcake ... why not make them in the summer?
These Tropical Fruit and Rum cookies start out by soaking dried tropical fruit in flavourful rum, and just get even better from there!
Tropical Fruit and Rum Cookie Ingredients
Dried Fruit
I used a combination of dried papaya, dried pineapple, some banana chips (I’d smashed them up a bit), and golden raisins.
You can use whatever dried fruit you’d like, in whatever proportions you’d like, though!
Nuts
I generally use cashews for this, as I love the flavour combo with the tropical fruit, and it’s a pleasing texture.
That said, you can use any nut - or combo of nuts - that you like. Macadamias are a great option to keep it tropical, for instance!
Rum
Generally speaking, I used to use amber rum almost exclusively for this recipe.
Now that I have moved home to Canada, I prefer to use Screech - a Jamaican black rum. I love the complex flavour, it works particularly well with the tropical fruit.
You can use white, amber, dark, or even spiced rum with this. Use whatever you like to drink!
More Boozy Desserts
Looking for more desserts with spirit? Here are a few more recipes that feature liqueur as a flavouring ingredient:
Bahama Mama Torte
Bananas Foster Pavlova
Boozy Chocolate Haystack Cookies
Boozy Crème Brûlée
Boozy Raspberry-Peach Bread Pudding
Jalapeno Beer Baklava
Limoncello Madeleines
Mango Mojito Upside Down Cake
Melon Ball Trifle
Peachy Southern Comfort Cheesecake
Poached Pears
Rum Runner Trifle
Southern Comfort Peach Popsicles
... and be sure to check out my "Spirited Baking & Cooking Recipes" category for more!
If you enjoy baking with alcohol you should check out my first cookbook, The Spirited Baker. It’s FULL of fun, tasty recipes using spirits and liqueurs for flavour!
Combining liqueurs with more traditional baking ingredients can yield spectacular results. Try Mango Mojito Upside Down Cake, Candy Apple Flan, Jalapeno Beer Peanut Brittle, Lynchburg Lemonade Cupcakes, Pina Colada Rum Cake, Strawberry Daiquiri Chiffon Pie, and so much more.
To further add to your creative possibilities, the first chapter teaches how to infuse spirits to make both basic and cream liqueurs, as well as homemade flavor extracts! This book contains over 160 easy-to-make recipes, with variation suggestions to help create hundreds more! Order your hard copy here on my website, through Amazon, or through any major bookseller.
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Tropical Fruit & Rum Cookies
Equipment
- 2 Baking Sheets
Ingredients
- 3 cups Mixed Dried Fruit*
- 1 cup Shredded Coconut
- 1 cup Amber Rum **
- ¼ cup Butter
- ¼ cup Dark Brown Sugar
- 2 Large Eggs
- Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
- 1 cup All-Purpose Flour
- ½ tsp. Baking Soda
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ lb. Unsalted Cashews chopped
Instructions
- A day or two before baking the cookies, chop dried fruits into pieces, mix in rum, and cover.
- Preheat oven to 325F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper, or coat well with baking spray.
- Strain dried fruit mixture, leaving it in your sieve to drain while you prepare the rest of the cookie batter.
- Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs and zest, continue beating until eggs are fully incorporated and mixture is once again smooth and fluffy.
- In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the butter & sugar mixture, beat gently until well combined. Add strained fruit and cashews to the cookie batter, mix well.
- Use a tablespoon, cookie scoop, or small ice cream scoop to drop rounded spoonfuls of the batter onto prepared baking sheets.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown.
- Allow to cool on sheets for 5 minutes or so, before gently transferring to baking racks to finish cooling.
- Once cookies are cool, keep them stored in airtight containers.
Notes
Nutrition
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