And still another fruitcake

I adore this time of year. There is a lovely chaos in the kitchen as ingredients for cakes and cookies pile up on the counter waiting their turn in the baking extravaganza that marks this season at our house.

Ingredients awaiting transformation into  luscious fruitcake

Here is the recipe for my current favorite amoung dark fruitcakes.

Martha Pearl's Heirloom Dark Fruitcake

1. 1 pound seedless golden raisins
2. 1 pound seedless dark raisins
3. 1/2 pound crystallized citron, coarsely chopped
4. 1/4 crystallized orange peel, coarsely chopped
5. 1/4 pound crystallized lemon peel, coarsely chopped
6. 1 pound crystallized pineapple, coarsely chopped
7. 1 pound dates, pitted and coarsely chopped
8. 1 pound crystallized cherries, cut in half
9. 2 pounds pecans, coarsely broken up
10. 4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
11. 1 pound butter, at room temperature
12. 2 cups sugar
13. 1 dozen large eggs
14. 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
15. 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
16. 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
17. 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
18. 1 teaspoon salt
19. 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
20. 2 teaspoons pure almond extract
21. 1/4 cup bourbon or brandy
22. Bourbon for sprinkling and soaking

In a large mixing bowl, combine the raisins, citron, orange peel, lemon peel, pineapple, dates, cherries and pecans, add half the flour and mix well. In another very large bowl, cream the butter with an electric mixer, add the sugar, and beat till light and fluffy Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the remaining flour, the spices, salt and extracts, and mix with a wooden spoon till well blended.Add the fruit and nut mixture along with bourbon and, using your hands, mix the batter well.

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F.

Grease and lightly flour the bottom and sides of the pans you will be using. (one recipe fills 3 large loaf pans and 4 small pans.) Line the pans with heavy brown paper, letting the paper extend 1-inch above the pans. Grease the brown paper, scrape the batter into pans and, using your hands, pack the batter firmly to 1/2-inch below the tops of the pans. Cover the tops with sheets of waxed paper, place a shallow pan of water on the lower rack of the oven, place the cake pans on the middle rack, and bake the small cakes about 2 1/2 hours and the larger cakes, 3 hours. Test by using a straw inserted in the middle. When the straw comes out clean the cakes are done. Remove the waxed paper during the final 15 minutes of cooking.

Remove the cakes from the oven, immediately sprinkle each with bourbon and let cool in the pans. Remove the cakes from the pans when they are cool and wrap in cheesecloth soaked in bourbon.Then wrap tightly in heavy-duty aluminum foil. Store in airtight containers at least one month before cutting.

Soon these cakes will be making their way across the country to friends who are waiting for them