World's Best Fruitcake #Christmas #cake

WORLD'S BEST FRUITCAKE

Trust me, I've heard all the jokes.  Entry occlusive, pin modify, author bags, you personage it. The text "world's best" and fruitcake are mostly not seen as harmonious with one another.  After all, it's belike one of the most ridiculed burned artifact in world.

You undergo those ones that are sold in the stores or conveyed as gifts at this example of the twelvemonth?  I detest those ones too.

They're dry (in a this-must-have-been-baked-several-months-ago humane of way) and filled with those scary argonon, crystalised fruit bits.  I'm not yet reliable if they are actually production.

INGREDIENTS:
Soaked Fruit:

• 2 ½ cups dried currants
• 2 cups dark raisins
• 1 ¾ cups mixed combination of dried fruit (apricots, apples, pears, peaches)
• 1 cup dried black figs
• ¾ cup chopped prunes
• ½ cups dried cherries
• 6 ounces dark rum

Cake Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 ¼ cups brown sugar
• 5 eggs, room temperature
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest
• 1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
• ½ cup fresh squeezed orange juice
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 granny smith apple (peeled), chopped or grated
• ¾ cup slivered almonds (or if prefer, chopped pecans or walnuts)
• 2 tablespoons finely diced crystallized ginger
• one batch soaked fruit mixture (see above)
• ½ to 2/3 cup of dark/bittersweet chocolate pieces or chocolate chips (optional)

Apricot Glaze:

• 1/4 cup apricot preserves
• 1/4 cup water

For Storage:

• dry sherry or triple sec
• unbleached cheesecloth

DIRECTIONS:
Prepare the night before:

1. Chop all of the dried fruit and place in a large mixing bowl. Add the dark rum, cover with plastic wrap, and allow fruit to soak overnight in a cool place.
2. Prepare Cake:
3. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly butter two 9 x 5 inch loaf pans and line with parchment paper.
4. In separate bowl, whisk together the flour, spices, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
5. In bowl of stand mixer (fitted with a paddle attachment), cream the butter and sugar over medium speed until light and fluffy.
6. Add the eggs one at a time and beat until just incorporated, scraping the bowl down with a spatula after each additional.
7. Over low speed, slowly add the flour mixture until just combined. Add the orange juice, zest, maple syrup, fresh apple, slivered almonds, candied ginger, and soaked dried fruit and stir with a spatula until everything is incorporated.
8. Divide the batter evenly among the loaf pans. Bake at 300 degrees (F) for 1 ¼ to 1 ½ hours, or until cake is set. Remove from oven and place on rack to cool completely, before removing. Once the cake has cooled, soak cheesecloth in sherry (or triple sec) and wrap each cake in cheesecloth tightly.
9. Cover loafs with wax paper and foil, before placing in a large ziploc bag. Store in refrigerator for up to 6-8 weeks. Unwrap and soak cheese cloth with medium dry sherry once a week.

To Serve:

1. Combine apricot preserves and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a light simmer, until glaze is thin and shiny (you can reduce if too thin, or add more water if it gets too thick).
2. Brush tops of fruit cakes with apricot glaze and garnish with pecans or waters.

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