Blue Ribbon Fruit Cake
MEDIUM SYRUP:
1/2 cup Sugar
1 cup Water
1 tablespoon White Corn Syrup
FRUIT CAKE:
1 cup Medium Syrup
1/2 pound Candied Citron
1/2 pound Candied Pineapple
1/2 pound Candied Cherries
2 15 oz pk Raisins
2 pounds Whole Dates
1 medium Orange Juice and Rind
1 medium Lemon Juice and Rind
1 pint Peach Brandy
2 pounds Pecan Meats
4 cups Flour
1 1/2 teaspoons Salt
3/4 pound Butter
2 1/4 cups Sugar
1 cup Buttermilk
6 Eggs beaten
Medium Syrup: Pour sugar in water and heat to boiling, then simmer
for 5 minutes. Add White Corn Syrup and cool. Cake: Slice candied
fruits, raisins, dates and pecan meats into match-stick widths about
1/2 inch long. Add medium syrup, peach brandy and juice and ground
rinds of orange and lemon to sliced fruits, etc. Place in large
vessel to soak at least overnight. Turn mass over with heavy spoon
periodically to promote thorough soaking.
Make cake batter with remaining ingredients and blend with soaked
mix. Fill brown-paper-lined cake pans 3/4 full with batter. Pat thin
film of buttermilk on top of batter to prevent scorching. Place pan
of water on bottom of oven. Bake at 250�F until well-done. (A 1 1/2
lb cake will take about 2 1/2 hours.)
NOTES: This is a *fruit* cake and not a fruited *cake*. There is
nearly 8 pounds of fruits, nuts and so forth and the cake batter has
only 4 cups of flour. You *MUST* cool this cake to a temperature not
higher than 40�F in order to slice it and, even then, use a
serrated-edged knife with a good "sawing" motion to prevent tearing
the cake.
The cake should be made near Thanksgiving day and really "ages" well
if it is wrapped in a double thickness of cheesecloth. Soak the
cheesecloth with peach brandy one night. The next night, turn the
cakes upside down to help distribute the brandy. On the second
night, turn the cakes right side up again and soak the cheesecloth
with some more peach brandy. Keep this routine up until about the
21st of December; after that date, just turn the cakes over nightly. |