Brandied Fruit Cake
Desserts
Cake
Ingredients
3 cups sifted all purpose flour
1 teaspoon soda
1 teaspoon EACH of salt, cinnamon and nutmeg
3/4 cup shortening (can be part vegetable shortening, part butter or margarine)
1/2 cup EACH of honey & firmly packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup brandy
1 pound mixed candied fruits
1 cup whole candied cherries (part red, part green)
1 cup golden raisins
1 cup coarsely broken walnut meats
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift flour once; measure and sift with soda, salt and spices. In bowl of electric mixer combine shortening, brown sugar, honey and eggs, beat at high speed until light and fluffy, probably about five minutes. Remove beaters and stir in brandy, then fruits and nuts. Add dry ingredients gradually, beating well with strong spoon until well mixed. Spoon into prepared pan. (Greased and floured 9 inch tube pan or 2 loaf pans). Bake about 2 1/4 hours for tube pan or approximately 1 hour for loaf pans, or until cake tester comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on cake rack about 15 minutes, remove from pan and finish cooling. Wrap in aluminum foil, folding foil over to close tightly. Store in refrigerator to "ripen". About once a week open foil and dribble cake with brandy.
Notes
If cake is browning too fast in last half hour or third of baking time, place a square of foil on oven rack ABOVE cake, have rack placed so it is about two inches above surface of cake if possible. (The rack the cake is on should, of course, be placed so that cake is about the same distance from oven bottom as from top.)