Dave's Garden Cookbook: AMARETTO FRUITCAKE

AMARETTO FRUITCAKE

By gardendragon

Category: Cakes, Cheesecakes and Icings

Ingredients   Fruit: 1 ½ cups golden raisins, about 6 oz 4 oz diced candied citron peel 8 oz candied red cherries 4 oz candied green cherries 8 oz candied yellow pineapple ¼ cup each of brandy and Amaretto or ½ cup brandy Cake: ½ cup all purpose flour 4 oz package whole blanched almonds ½ cup each butter & shortening 1 cup granulated sugar 4 eggs 1-2 tsp almond flavouring 2 ½ cups all purpose flour ¼ cup each of brandy & Amaretto or ½ cup brandy ¼ cup milk 2 oz (½ cup) ground almonds

Instructions   DAY 1: Place raisins, peel and whole cherries in a large bowl. Cut pineapple inot ½" pieces and add. Pour ¼ cup each of brandy and Amaretto over top. Mix throughly, cover and leave overnight. DAY 2: Preheat oven to 275. Grease a 6½ and a 5" round fruit cake pan, or any suitable baking pans that will hold at least 11½ cups batter. Line the pans with heavy brown paper and grease the paper. Sprinkle ½ cup flour over the fruit mixture, and toss to coat fruit. Mix in whole nuts. Place ½ cup each of butter & shortening in a large mixing bowl. Beat together until creamy. Gradually beat in the sugar, eggs, then the flavourings. Add 1 teaspoon almond flavouring if you've added almond liqueur or 2 teaspoons if you've only added brandy. Add about ¾ cup of flour, beating just until mixed. Beat in the brandy & Amaretto. Add another ¾ cup of flour, beating just until mixed. Beat in the milk and remaining ¾ cup flour. Then stir in the almonds. Pour over the fruit and nut mixture and stir until combined. Turn into the prepared cake pans and smooth the top. Place a pan containing water on the bottom rack of the oven. Bake cakes in the centre of preheated oven for 2 - 3 hours. Remove from oven, let cool in pans on a rack for 15 - 20 minutes. Then remove from the pans & peel off paper. Cool completely. Wrap cakes in cheesecloth moistened with brandy and store in a tightly covered container or overwrap with foil. Makes 5 lbs about 113 calories per 1 oz slice.

Extra Notes   This is a very white fruit cake and even though the English always put Almond paste and Royal icing on their fruit cakes this cake I never put anything on as it is such a lovely white cake.