Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site ttrdc.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!ihnp4!mgnetp!ltuxa!ttrdc!levy From: levy@ttrdc.UUCP (Daniel R. Levy) Newsgroups: net.cooks Subject: fruitcake Message-ID: <602@ttrdc.UUCP> Date: Sun, 24-Nov-85 01:21:18 EST Article-I.D.: ttrdc.602 Posted: Sun Nov 24 01:21:18 1985 Date-Received: Mon, 25-Nov-85 06:43:45 EST Organization: AT&T, Computer Systems Division, Skokie, IL Lines: 104 This is a recipe for "Old-Fashioned Light Fruit Cake" which was given to me by my associate, Ted Estes (of Phantasia fame--watch net.sources.games for a while to see what I mean). I made several of these last year and they were all quite good. There is no citrus peel in this recipe, which makes it especially nice. I have reformatted and rephrased the recipe in an attempt to make it as clear as possible; my own comments are bracketed in []'s. I am submitting this recipe now because for optimum flavor, this cake needs to mellow for a period (3 weeks is a good minimum, but shorter periods may do). It is a good holiday season cake. Old-Fashioned Light Fruit Cake ------------------------------ 2 1/4 cups (1 lb.) granulated white sugar 1/2 lb. (2 sticks) softened butter [or margarine] 6 eggs [medium or large] 1 ounce (2 Tablespoons) brandy flavoring [or sherry flavoring] 4 cups (1 lb.) sifted all purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon 1 teaspoon nutmeg 1 1/2 lb. whole pecan meats [or large pieces; walnuts are OK too] 3/4 lb. chopped candied pineapple [if you get it in rings, it works pretty well to use the front edge of a wide flat metal spatula on a flat plate to chop it up; the wider the chopping edge the better since being sticky, it is hard to deal with] 3/4 lb. whole candied cherries [not maraschino] 1 lb. white seedless raisins [as best as I can tell, there is no visible difference if dark are used as they darken during baking anyway. Some brands of raisins come in 15 oz. boxes; this is fine] about 1/4 cup honey or light corn syrup [this is used to paint the cake top 1/2 hour before baking has finished; honey makes it a lot easier to clean the pan afterward than corn syrup] about 1 1/4 cups wine [light sherry wine is good for this; it is used on cloths to wrap the cake with during the mellowing period] Pans: two 9" x 5" x 3" loaf, or four 1-lb. coffee cans, or one 10" x 4" angel-food tube pan Aluminum foil sufficient to line pans Clean cheesecloth sufficient to wrap cake [the food-contact-safe microwave paper towels also are very good for this] Plastic wrap or other airtight wrap Airtight cake container(s) or plastic bags Oven: 275 degrees Fahrenheit (not a typo--two seventy five) Line the inside of the pans with the foil. Do NOT grease. Mix the sugar, butter [or margarine], eggs, and flavoring together. Use a huge bowl if you have one [the standard large mixer bowl is just barely adequate if you are very careful when adding the fruits and nuts later]. Add the flour, spices, and salt to this. Mix thoroughly into a uniform batter. [Original said to sift them together; this is unnecessary. In fact, if you measured the flour by weight, or equivalent means, even sifting the flour is unnecessary.] Now work the nuts and fruits into this batter. Save aside some of the fruits and nuts if desired for later decoration. Use a sturdy spoon or the hands; the mixture will be very stiff. The mixture should be fairly even. Pour this mixture into the pans; pans should be about 2/3 full. [Actually, split it up evenly among the pans chosen and that should be OK. Pack it down with the back of a spoon.] Bake: about three hours for the tube pan, or two hours for the smaller pans. One-half hour before the end of the allotted baking time, brush or spread the honey or corn syrup onto the top of the cake(s). At that time, also press on any saved fruits or nuts for decoration. Cool to room temperature (overnight). Lift [or dump] out of the pans [this is easier if you used honey to glaze with]. Peel off the foil. Soak clean cheesecloth [or food-safe paper toweling] in the wine and wrap the cake(s) with it. Then wrap the cake(s) with plastic wrap, and let stand in an airtight container or sealed plastic bag for a period (3 weeks or more is best) in a cool [but not cold--not the refrigerator] place. [Note--if you do not like the idea of using an alcoholic beverage for this, then you might use grape juice and/or orange juice instead. In this case, it might be wise to refrigerate the cake while it is mellowing since otherwise it would be mold-prone. The amount of alcohol in a single piece of this cake is very little, and even though, for example, I do not imbibe alcohol at all, I still like sherry for mellowing these cakes since it imparts a marvelous aroma and flavor.] -- ------------------------------- Disclaimer: The views contained herein are | dan levy | yvel nad | my own and are not at all those of my em- | an engihacker @ | ployer or the administrator of any computer | at&t computer systems division | upon which I may hack. | skokie, illinois | -------------------------------- Path: ..!ihnp4!ttrdc!levy