Judy - Fruited Holiday Tea Loaves

[Guest guest]

Your recipe sounds great.  You might liuke this one.  I don't care for citron in

fruitcake and this doesn' have it.

Mae Jean

 

 

 

 

Fruited Holiday Tea Loaves

 

1 3/4 pounds diced dried fruits, chose among raisins, dried cherries,

cranberries, apricots, peaches, nectarines, pears, dates, figs, apples,

pineapple, candied cherries, lemon peel, orange peel, crystallized ginger, etc.

 

1/4 cup orange juice

1 cup eggs

1 7/8 cups oil

2 cups sugar

2 cups milk or soy milk

3 cups sifted cake flour

1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon cinnamon

10 ounces chopped nuts (pecans and walnuts)

 

Sprinkle the juice over the fruit and set it aside. The juice will be absorbed

while the rest of the ingredients are mixed.

In the mixer bowl, blend the first three ingredients. Sift the other dry

ingredients together, reserving about a cup of flour, and add alternately with

the milk. This batter stores well under refrigeration or freezing, Toss the

remaining flour with the nuts and soaked fruit. This is called " dredging. "

Coating the fruit with dry flour traps air, which makes it buoyant in the thick

liquid until the batter solidifies.

Notes: I line my loaf-pans with brown paper or baker's pan liner with pan

grease. That way they slip right out of the pan, already wrapped, and the pan

needs very little scrubbing. Grocery bags are fine for this. There is enough

batter for three loaf pans.

You can fill the pans, freeze it raw and stack the wrapped bricks in the

freezer. The night before you want to serve it (fresh-baked) drop it back in the

pan to thaw in the refrigerator.

Rest it for half an hour before baking, to counteract any overmixing. Overmixing

creates a tougher product with large teardrop shaped air pockets, called

tunnels.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

The loaf will rise evenly and develop a crease down the center. It will " skin "

before it finishes rising, splitting open at the crease and doming. When you

check for doneness, look into this crack. The batter should be golden.

Serve it with choice of sweet butter or cream cheese. A dollop or rosette of

cream cheese icing would work well, too. Come to think of it, I wouldn't object

to a saucer of lemon curd, either. Since it's kind of a cross between a fruit

cake and a muffin, lots of English and New England sorts of accompaniments

should work (Hard sauce, Ginger Cream) for a snack. Yields 3 loaves.