LNC Cookbook -

Desserts

Christmas Fruit Cake

by Maresa Ventura

Ingredients:

2 3/8 cups plain flour or Maida
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/8 cups butter
Generous cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups mixed dried fruit, chopped into small pieces and soaked in rum for 2 months, or an hour if short on time (LOL)
1 teaspoon finely grated orange rind
3 eggs, beaten well
1/2 cup cold milk
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 teaspoon baking powder

Preparation:

Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a big bowl. Mix in the butter and rub finely with fingertips to form crumbs. Add the sugar, vanilla essence, chopped fruit, and orange rind and mix well. Add the milk and eggs and, using a fork, mix to a semi-stiff batter without churning or beating. When evenly mixed, pour the mixture into a greased and papered cake tin and bake in a hot oven for 45 minutes or till the cake is cooked inside and brown on the top. Serves 6.