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Don't you have Xmas cake in the US? Do you have wedding cake? I.e. a heavy fruit cake which has been soaked in port/sherry/rum/whisky and then decorated with m

Don't you have Xmas cake in the US? Do you have wedding cake? I.e. a heavy fruit cake which has been soaked in port/sherry/rum/whisky and then decorated with marzipan and royal icing? Xmas cake is the same thing. It's part of the English (i.e. British) tradition, and probably spread to the colonies and trading partners. Which would explain it being known in China. We also have Xmas Pudding, which is a similar fruity better but it's steamed and served with the thickest cream you can find (which in my youth was clotted cream).

dfcowell 11y ago
Christmas Cake in Japan is entirely different from what the British call it. In Japan it's a double layer chiffon sponge filled with strawberries and cream, with additional strawberries and cream on top.
- vgnanand 11y ago
  Guess, you mean Japanese Strawberry Shortcakes?
Avshalom 11y ago
We do not have Christmas Cake in the US as far as I've ever seen. Even 'fruit cake' which exists solely around Christmas has been the butt of jokes for at least 30 years so very few people actually buy/eat them and they don't usually have anything (booze, frosting) going on with them.
- baby 11y ago
  Wow, always figured it was the same everywhere. Here in France we have "buche de noel" which means "log of Christmas" because it's a cake shaped like a log.
  - Avshalom 11y ago
    We do have 'yule logs' which wikipedia tells me are broadly the same cake (chocolate sponge cake rolled up around frosting) but I don't know that it's really all that common. US Christmas is stereotypically endless cookies, with gingerbread and cinnamon rolls coming in strong. In general though I think the culinary traditions aren't really unified enough to be worth talking about.
    - dorfsmay 11y ago
      Except for eggnog!
  - dplgk 11y ago
    I totally forgot I learned about buche de noel in French class about 20 years ago. Thanks for the flashback.
    - baby 11y ago
      I find the thought that we have a lot of seasonal cakes amusing. You can find "Galette des rois" around january only, "bugnes" around march I think, "papillotes" and "buches" for Christmas...
aikah 11y ago
Interesting, in France we eat that cake on Xmas : https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=christmas+cake&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj5z5yF8PbJAhWB0hoKHW8qBCwQ_AUIBygB&biw=670&bih=662#tbm=isch&q=buche+de+noel https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=christmas+cake&source=lnms... I don't where that comes from, obviously it's in the shape of a firewood, I wonder if other countries follow the same tradition.
- DanBC 11y ago
  We have Yule Logs in the UK, because some people dislike the other Christmas cake. https://www.google.co.uk/search?tbm=isch&sa=1&q=yule+log https://www.google.co.uk/search?tbm=isch&sa=1&q=yule+log https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule_log https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule_log
  - aikah 11y ago
    Thanks, so apparently it comes from Germany, I thought only people in french speaking countries were eating that kind of cake.
  - jpindar 11y ago
    We have those in the US too, but we don't call them 'Christmas cake'.
mratzloff 11y ago
Americans would think of something completely different if you mentioned "wedding cake". A stereotypical one would be: http://uwebus.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/small-wedding-cakes-of-flawless-wedding-cakes-wedding-cakes-mesmerizing-cupcakes-wedding-ideas-plus-small.jpg http://uwebus.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/small-wedding-c...
- megablast 11y ago
  Yes, that is right. Xmas cake is the fruit cake often found inside the wedding cake.
  - ChristianGeek 11y ago
    U.S. wedding cakes do not have fruitcake inside them.
qbrass 11y ago
They're just called fruitcake in the US. The tradition goes: Anyone who has never taken a taste of one before, takes a taste, then throw the cake out, and never try eating one again. If a cake has lasted the year without anyone taking a bite of it, you re-gift it.

dfcowell 11y ago

Christmas Cake in Japan is entirely different from what the British call it. In Japan it's a double layer chiffon sponge filled with strawberries and cream, with additional strawberries and cream on top.

vgnanand 11y ago
Guess, you mean Japanese Strawberry Shortcakes?

Avshalom 11y ago

We do not have Christmas Cake in the US as far as I've ever seen. Even 'fruit cake' which exists solely around Christmas has been the butt of jokes for at least 30 years so very few people actually buy/eat them and they don't usually have anything (booze, frosting) going on with them.

baby 11y ago
Wow, always figured it was the same everywhere. Here in France we have "buche de noel" which means "log of Christmas" because it's a cake shaped like a log.
- Avshalom 11y ago
  We do have 'yule logs' which wikipedia tells me are broadly the same cake (chocolate sponge cake rolled up around frosting) but I don't know that it's really all that common. US Christmas is stereotypically endless cookies, with gingerbread and cinnamon rolls coming in strong. In general though I think the culinary traditions aren't really unified enough to be worth talking about.
  - dorfsmay 11y ago
    Except for eggnog!
- dplgk 11y ago
  I totally forgot I learned about buche de noel in French class about 20 years ago. Thanks for the flashback.
  - baby 11y ago
    I find the thought that we have a lot of seasonal cakes amusing. You can find "Galette des rois" around january only, "bugnes" around march I think, "papillotes" and "buches" for Christmas...

aikah 11y ago

Interesting, in France we eat that cake on Xmas : https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=christmas+cake&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj5z5yF8PbJAhWB0hoKHW8qBCwQ_AUIBygB&biw=670&bih=662#tbm=isch&q=buche+de+noel https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=christmas+cake&source=lnms... I don't where that comes from, obviously it's in the shape of a firewood, I wonder if other countries follow the same tradition.

DanBC 11y ago
We have Yule Logs in the UK, because some people dislike the other Christmas cake. https://www.google.co.uk/search?tbm=isch&sa=1&q=yule+log https://www.google.co.uk/search?tbm=isch&sa=1&q=yule+log https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule_log https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yule_log
- aikah 11y ago
  Thanks, so apparently it comes from Germany, I thought only people in french speaking countries were eating that kind of cake.
- jpindar 11y ago
  We have those in the US too, but we don't call them 'Christmas cake'.

mratzloff 11y ago

Americans would think of something completely different if you mentioned "wedding cake". A stereotypical one would be: http://uwebus.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/small-wedding-cakes-of-flawless-wedding-cakes-wedding-cakes-mesmerizing-cupcakes-wedding-ideas-plus-small.jpg http://uwebus.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/small-wedding-c...

megablast 11y ago
Yes, that is right. Xmas cake is the fruit cake often found inside the wedding cake.
- ChristianGeek 11y ago
  U.S. wedding cakes do not have fruitcake inside them.

qbrass 11y ago

They're just called fruitcake in the US. The tradition goes: Anyone who has never taken a taste of one before, takes a taste, then throw the cake out, and never try eating one again. If a cake has lasted the year without anyone taking a bite of it, you re-gift it.