Source of the recipes are from http://lilysbest.blogspot.com/2010/12/easy-christmas-fruitcake.html?m=1
Ingredients:
1/4 cup Brandy or Rum
2 cups mixed dried fruit ( raisins, golden raisin and cranberry)
1 cup of chopped nut ( almond, cashew and walnut)
300g all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2tsp ground mixed spice
1/4 tsp salt
300g unsalted butter - room temperature
2 cups confectioners' sugar/powdered sugar
4 to 5 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
Zest from 2 big orange
Half cup of homemade Caramel sauce
Method:
Grease and lined a 9 inches square tin.
Put rum and dried fruit in a saucepan and cook until the brandy is soaked up by the fruits. Add the nut and let it cool.
Sieve flour, baking powder, spices and salt together.
Cream room temperature butter until light, reduce speed to low and add in 1+1/2 cups of confectioners; sugar, a little at a time, turn back to speed 2 and continue to cream until light and fluffy.
Add in the egg yolks, one at a time , cream well before adding the next one.
Using a microplane, zest the orange and lemon (you might have to use 2 oranges or 2 lemons if you are using an ordinary grater cos the microplane grates more zest) and add into the butter mixture. Add in the vanilla extract and cream well to combine.
Add in the caramel sauce and cream well
Reduce the speed to low and add in the sieved flour in 3 portions. Mix well.
Remove from stand mixer and add in all the fruits and nuts. Stir to combine the fruits and nuts to the mixture.
Whisk egg whites until foamy before adding in the 1/2 cup of confectioners' sugar and beat until soft peak. When whisk is lifted from bowl, whites form droopy, moist-looking, but definite peaks.
Stir in 1/3 of the beatened egg whites and mix in thoroughly, then fold in the rest of the egg whites.
Divide batter evenly amougst the prepared loaf pans and put to bake in 325 f preheated oven for 50 minutes or until a toothpick test comes out clean.
Remove from oven and leave to rest on a cake rack for 5 to 10 minutes before removing the greaseproof paper. Leave the cakes to cool completely before wrapping in cling wrap.
