Fruitcake Trio

You’ve all heard the jokes, but Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without fruitcake. Grease 3 9” × 5” baking pans, then line with aluminum foil, then grease again. Now you’re ready to prepare the main batter first, and then follow the individualized instructions for making 3 quite different fruitcakes to suit any taste. Main batter

1½ cups butter or margarine

1½ cups granulated sugar

1½ cups dark brown sugar, packed

9 large eggs

5 cups flour

1½ teaspoons baking powder

1½ teaspoons salt

1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

1½ teaspoons ground nutmeg

1½ cups almonds, coarsely chopped (optional)

• In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars.
• Beat in eggs at low speed, one at a time.
• Slowly combine flour into butter mixture until it forms a light, fluffy batter.
• In a small bowl, blend next 4 ingredients. Mix into large bowl.
• By hand, fold chopped almonds into the batter.
• Preheat the oven to 300F. At this point, divide batter into 3 different bowls to make 3 different kinds of fruitcake. (You can choose to make 3 fruitcakes all of the same kind, but remember the amounts that follow are calculated for just one of each loaf.)

Dark Raisin Fruitcake
• As directed above, take ⅓ of the batter formed in the Main Batter section and add in the following until well blended:
• ¼ cup molasses
• ¼ teaspoon cloves
• ½ teaspoon ground allspice
• 2 cups each dark raisins and golden raisins
• ⅓ cup chopped dates

Morning Sunshine Fruitcake
• As directed above, take ⅓ of the batter formed in the Main Batter section and add in the following until well blended:
• ¼ cup orange juice
• ¼ teaspoon crushed cardamom seed
• ½ cup each orange peel and lemon peel, chopped
• 1 tablespoon lime juice
• 1½ cups mixed candied green cherries and yellow candied pineapple, chopped

Nut-Lovers’ Fruitcake
• As directed above, take ⅓ of the batter formed in the Main Batter section and add in the following until well blended:
• 1 cup each pecans and walnuts, chopped
• ½ cup hazelnuts, chopped
• 1½ cups candied mixed fruit, chopped

• If desired, wrap fruitcake in brandy-soaked cheesecloth and then in foil. Remoisten cloth every other week. Or wrap without liquor. Store for up to 2 months; freeze for longer periods. Before giving, glaze tops with small quantity of pineapple preserves, apple, jelly, or orange marmalade. Decorate with halved nuts and candied fruits.
• Pour each batter into 1 prepared 9” × 5” pan.
• Place a shallow pan of water on the lower oven rack to prevent drying.
• Place the 3 pans containing the batter next to each other, but not touching, on the top rack.
• Cook for 1½ hours or until cake tester inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean. If the tops of the cakes start to become too brown near the end of cooking time, cover them with aluminum foil.
• Cool in pans on cooling racks for 15 minutes. Using aluminum foil, carefully pull cakes out of pans and let cool on cooling racks.