Millionaire’s Fruitcake

Title: MILLIONAIRE'S FRUITCAKE

Categories: Cakes, Holiday

Yield: 4 Pounds

-MARY WILSON BWVB02B

1/2 pk (12oz) pitted prunes (1 cup)

- each cut in half 1 pk (10oz) dried figs; chopped

- (1 cup)

1 pk (6oz) dried apricot halves;

- chopped (1 cup)

1/2 pk (10oz) pitted dates (1 cup)

2 c Pecans

1 c Red candied cherries (8oz)

1/2 c Candied pineapple wedges

- (4 oz) 1/2 c Diced candied lemon peel

- (4 oz) 1 c Sugar

1 c Shortening

2 c All-purpose flour

2 ts Baking powder

1 ts Salt

1 ts Vanilla extract

5 lg Eggs

1/4 c Apricot preserves; garnish

Dried fruit, green and red

- candied cherries, and - pecans for garnish

1 month ahead: Grease 10-inch tube pan; line bottom of

pan with foil; grease foil. In large bowl, combine first 9 ingredients. In

another large bowl, with mixer at low speed, beat sugar and shortening just

until blended. Increase speed to high; beat until light and fluffy. Add

flour, baking powder, salt, vanilla extract, and eggs. Beat at low speed

until mixture is just blended, constantly scraping bowl with rubber

spatula. Stir batter into fruit mixture. Preheat oven to 325

F. Spoon

batter into pan. Bake fruitcake 1 1/2 hours or until toothpick inserted in

center comes out clean. Cool cake completely in pan on wire rack. Remove

from pan and carefully peel off foil. Wrap fruitcake tightly in plastic

wrap or foil. Refrigerate fruitcake overnight so cake will be firm and easy

to slice. To serve, if you like, in small saucepan over medium heat, heat

apricot preserve until just melted, stirring occasionally. Brush cake with

half of apricot preserves. Garnish top of cake with dried fruit, candied

cherries, and pecans. Brush fruit and pecans with remaining apricot

4 3/4 pounds fruit cake or 36 servings. Each serving

265 calories,

10 g fat,

30 mg cholesterol,

90 mg

sodium. Source: Good Housekeeping Institute Recipes, December

1994. --