Magazine recipe turns into cherished family tradition 37 years strong
December 2024
by Laura Emery, Staff Writer
“The boys were doubtful, but they ate it,” recalls 82-year-old Judy Heflin, of Warrenton, Va., with a laugh.
She’s referring to when her three sons first tasted a fruitcake Heflin made from a recipe she discovered in a 1987 issue of Rural Living magazine, which is now called Cooperative Living.
“We were living in Elk Run and were members of Rappahannock Electric Cooperative back then,” she says. “I just happened to see that recipe in the magazine and tried it and loved it, and my family loved it too. I had no idea I was going to continue doing it.”
Heflin hasn’t made a fruitcake from any other recipe since then. In fact, she says there was only one year where she did not make the family’s favorite fruitcake.
“It just became such a thing that I needed to do every year,” she says. “It made the holidays more special for my family.” Heflin stores the fruitcake in a beautiful antique Dutch tin she and her late husband received from friends many years ago.
She almost didn’t make the fruitcake this year.
Heflin lost her husband of 63 years last year on Dec. 18. “I’ve been kind of melancholy coming up on the first-year anniversary of his passing,” she explains. “I started thinking about it and knew I just had to make it again this year, regardless of how I am feeling. It’s just something I needed to do.”
Over the years, Heflin has tweaked the recipe to meet her family’s needs. “I don’t particularly like the taste of alcohol, so I don’t add [brandy] to the fruitcake,” she says. “It’s just the perfect recipe for me.” She adds vanilla and almond extract as a substitute for the alcohol.
Heflin’s oldest son has taken on the tradition of making the fruitcake for his family as well. “He used to travel a lot, but he is retired now. But when he was traveling, he’d say, ‘Mama, I’m going to make the fruitcake.’ With him not being able to be home for Christmas, it always seemed to make me happy knowing that he was making it, wherever he was at the time,” she explains.
Blessed with 11 grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren, Heflin says, “At some point, almost everyone has tasted the fruitcake. It tastes like cherries, pineapple, nuts and spices. I really like the light texture of it, and it’s not bitter or heavy like some other fruitcake recipes. I don’t think anybody would turn their nose up at it.”
Over the years, Heflin’s copy of the recipe became “soiled and stained.” So, in 1997, she \ contacted the magazine and requested a new copy of the recipe page. Her request reached the desk of Richard G. Johnstone Jr., then-editor of Rural Living.
“Upon hearing of my request, Mr. Johnstone had someone go through the archives. Thanks to him, I received two laminated copies of the page with the recipe and a letter from him. He wrote, and I quote, ‘I am delighted that Rural Living has helped to develop a family tradition for you, and here’s hoping that this tradition keeps going well into the 21st century!’ As I look back each year at this time, I am reminded of his thoughtfulness and I hope this tradition will continue in our family,” she says.
Heflin loves sharing her fruitcake story with family and friends, so she decided to write into the magazine about how the recipe has become a cherished family tradition. This year, it’s also been a source of comfort as she grieves the loss of her husband.
Heflin laughs when she says, “My sons don’t understand why I’m making a big deal over this and why I wrote to you all about it. It’s not just about a fruitcake, but about something special shared between a mother and her son at Christmas.”