Washington Fruit Cake

Photo: flickr user eschipul

Ingredients

10 cups sugar

4 cups water, divided

1/2 pound dried apricots

1/2 pound dried pears

1/2 pound dried peaches

4 lg. tart apples, pared, thinly sliced

1 pound fresh cranberries

4 oranges, use only the peel

2 lbs. dried pitted prunes

3 cups golden raisins

3 cups reg. raisins

5 cups chopped nuts

9 cups flour

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon allspice

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon cardamom

2 cups butter

2 1/2 cups sugar

8 well beaten eggs

1 1/2 cups fruit juice (apple, peach or mixed)

Preparation

Make a syrup of 5 cups of sugar and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil, add apricots, pears and peaches, reduce heat and cook in syrup 20 minutes. Remove fruit and drain well.

Boil syrup again until thick; add firm cranberries that have been pricked to prevent skin from popping. Remove berries and let cool. Repeat process of boiling syrup and adding cranberries, removing and cooling three more times.

Tint the remaining syrup a deep green and boil until thick. Cook thinly sliced pared apples in syrup until transparent; drain fruit.

Make a syrup of the remaining 5 cups of sugar and 2 cups water. Bring to a boil and add the thinly sliced orange rind, cook until white peel is transparent. Drain fruit. Put the prunes in syrup and cook 20 minutes; drain.

Let all the candied fruit drain at least 24 hours. Cut candied fruit, except the cranberries, in short thin slices. Then combine the fruit and nuts. Set aside.

Mix flour with baking powder, salt and spices. Set aside.

In a large bowl cream the butter and sugar; add beaten eggs and blend well. Add flour mixture alternately with fruit juice, beating smooth after each addition. Stir in fruit mixture. Mix well. Pour in well greased lined pans (line with brown paper to fit bottom the over-line with waxed paper). Bake at 275 degrees until done. If browning too fast cover loosely with brown paper. Remove paper during the last 15 minutes.

Yields 12 pounds fruit cake. 7 1/2 x 3 1/2 pan (1 pound) bake 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours; 9x5 pan (2 pound) bake 2 hours.

When baked brush bottom of each cake with sweet fruit juice or brandy. Wrap in heavy foil paper and freeze. Keeps indefinitely. (Store cakes upside down in freezer so sweet fruit juice seeps into cake.)