In popular culture, the fruitcake has many uses, the least of which is its properties as a food item. Doorstop. Weapon. Building insulation. Hockey puck. Footstool. Renewable energy resource. Booster seat for a 2-year-old child. Percussive instrument. Speed bump. Discus or shot put. Boat anchor. Endless are the seeming possibilities.

Be that as it may, the much-maligned confection can, in fact, be put to its intended use: a traditional holiday treat. Because, yes, Virginia, fruitcake can be good, whether it’s an American-style cake with candied fruit and nuts, or a British-style delicacy covered in marzipan and icing. Soaked in bourbon or nonalcoholic. Freshly baked or preserved in the fridge or freezer. The fruitcake, done correctly, is not only not bad – it’s pretty darn good.

We have a mission this Christmas at the Bangor Daily News, and that’s to reclaim the dessert from its detractors. Bake your favorite fruitcake recipe, bring it to our offices on Main Street in Bangor by Dec. 10, and a panel of judges will select one each from two categories (alcoholic and nonalcoholic) as the finest fruitcake in the land. Together, we can show the world that the fruitcake is not an object of ridicule, but a delicious part of the holiday season as indispensable as eggnog, gingerbread and Grandpa falling asleep in front of the TV after three slices of pie.

Questions? Send them by e-mail to eburnham@bangordailynews.net. Happy holidays and happy baking!

Bangor Daily News Fruitcake Contest Rules

Two categories: alcoholic and nonalcoholic.

Cakes must be wrapped and in the condition that they can be stored in a fridge or freezer up until the weekend of Dec. 13-14, when the judging will occur. Please make enough cake that at least three people can each have a small slice.

Please drop your cakes off between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday-Friday at the Bangor Daily News offices at 491 Main St. in Bangor; please include your name, phone number, e-mail address and recipe. If you took your recipe from a cookbook or another person, please properly credit your source.

Cakes are due by Dec. 10, and a story with the results will run on Dec. 17.