Large-Batch Holiday Fruit Cake

A traditional, large-batch fruit cake that makes 11 pounds of rich, moist, and spicy cake. The fruit is cooked with spices in apricot nectar and soaked overnight for incredible depth of flavor.

Author

Unknown

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Recipe

Measurements	Ingredients
1 ½ Cups	Golden Raisins
1 ½ Cups	Dark Raisins
2 Cups	Dates, chopped
6 Cups	Mixed Candied Fruit
1 ½ Cups	Apricot Nectar (whole fruit)
2 tsps	Cinnamon
1 tsp	Allspice
½ tsp	Cloves
1 tsp	Nutmeg
2 Cups (1 lb)	Butter, softened
2 Cups	Sugar
10	Eggs
6 Cups	Flour
2 tsps	Salt
½ tsp	Baking Soda
2 Tbsps	Vanilla
2 Cups	Nuts

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Instructions

Day 1: Soaking the Fruit

1. Rinse and drain the raisins. If they are hard, steam them in a sieve over boiling water for a few minutes to soften.
2. In a large kettle or stockpot, combine the dates, candied fruits, raisins, spices (cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg), and apricot nectar.
3. Cook over low heat for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
4. Remove from heat, cover the pot, and let the fruit mixture stand at room temperature overnight.

Day 2: Mixing and Baking

1. Preparation: Preheat your oven to 300°F. Line one 9-inch tube pan and two 8.5x4.5 inch loaf pans with two layers of greased brown paper (or parchment paper), followed by one layer of greased wax paper. Place a shallow pan of water on the bottom rack of the oven.
2. Cream Wet Ingredients: In a very large bowl, cream the softened butter and sugar together. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
3. Combine Dry Ingredients: In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda.
4. Make the Batter: Add the sifted dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and stir to combine. Stir in the vanilla and nuts. The batter will be very thick.
5. Final Mix: Pour the prepared batter over the soaked fruit mixture in the kettle. Mix thoroughly with a sturdy spoon until everything is well combined.
6. Bake: Turn the batter into the prepared pans. Bake for 3 to 3 ½ hours. The cake is done when a long wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.

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