Dear Reader,
One of this year's Honorable Mentions, from my Write a DearReader Contest, written by Maureen Orr about her grandmother's fruit cake recipe, has a reader asking...
Hello Suzanne:
I always enjoy reading the DearReader Writing Contest winners' entries. Would you ask Maureen Jane Orr to send you her famous fruit cake recipe? Thank you. I think it'd be a good addition to one of your December columns.
-- David in Louisiana
It sounds like David is ready to bake. Are you? Here's Grandmother's recipe...
GRANDMA'S FRUITCAKE
DRY INGREDIENTS
5-6 cups flour
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp mace
1/2 tsp allspice
1 tsp nutmeg
MOIST INGREDIENTS
1 pound butter
10 eggs (gently blend)
1 pound dark brown sugar
1 cup applesauce (mixed with 1 teaspoon of baking soda right before adding)
1 cup good honey (Tupelo, if you can get it)
2/3 cup molasses
1/2 cup cider
1 cup very strong black coffee
FRUIT
1 pound of candied or dried pineapple
1 pound dates, pitted and chopped
1 pound figs, pitted and chopped
1 pound walnuts, chopped
1 pound candied cherries (red and green)
1 pound raisins (preferably white sultanas)
1 pound currants
1/2 pound citron
1/2 pound candied or dried orange peel
1/2 pound candied or dried lemon peel
1 small jar maraschino cherries
INSTRUCTIONS
Soak raisins and currants overnight in good Colombian Rum.
Sift 5 cups of flour with baking powder, and spices and sift together 3 times and add 1 cup of flour if necessary.
In a separate bowl, cream butter with sugars until light, add eggs and the rest of the moist ingredients. Gradually add flour until well mixed. Add fruit and nut mixtures. If batter is too runny, add more flour until it is a good consistency.
Use Pam on small cake pans and bake in oven at 250 degrees for 3-3 1/2 hours. When cooked, remove from pans. In 2 days, wrap in cheesecloth and soak with good Colombian Rum.
* If it doesn't snow where you live, or you want to make sure snow shows up on Christmas Day, be sure to enter my giveaway. Because this week, this Florida girl is giving away snow! One lucky reader will win a package of Let it Snow Instant Snow Powder. To enter the giveaway, click here.
Congratulations to Kathleen C, the winner of last week's Christmas Dish Towel Giveaway.
Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.
Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com
KIDSBUZZ: Click here to discover new books, "meet" the authors and enter to win.
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