MOM'S FRUITCAKE

I just put my fruitcake in the oven, so let's see how it turns out. This brings back many memories of cooking it with my mom. Every year on the Friday after Thanksgiving, we would start the fruitcake. Everything is so convenient now but many years ago, all the nuts had to be cracked and sometimes picked out of the shells. Then they were chopped by hand. All the candied fruit had to be chopped. Today I can go to the store and everything is ready to start mixing and put in the oven. Even my mom's fresh coconut cake is easier now, what with frozen coconut. No busting the coconut with hammer and smashing your finger. Or cutting your finger trying to peel the brown skin from the fresh coconut meat. Or nicking your finger on the grater. But it was fun to get to taste the little tidbits of coconut when the grating was done. Also squeezing oranges to get the juice for the fruitcake. These girls that cook today don't know how lucky it is to have so many things ready-made. Another thing that they don't know is that originally, fruitcake was the groom's cake. It wasn't made to eat but to take home and place under your pillow. The idea was that you would dream about your future husband. So much for old country ideas. My grandmother didn't have a mixer, just a hand-held egg-beater. My arm gets sore just thinking about it. So let's get to the ingredients for my mom's fruitcake.

MOM'S FRUITCAKE


2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups chopped walnuts
2 cups chopped pecans
2 cups candied fruit
1 cup candied red cherries
1 cup candied green cherries
1 box raisins (light or dark)
1/3 cup of fruit preserves (any flavor)
1/3 cup molasses
3 eggs
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
1 stick of butter
1/3 cup orange juice
Grease a 10" tube pan and line the bottom with parchment paper. Then grease again and lightly flour. Preheat oven to 250 F. Sift the flour and salt with the spices. Set aside. Chop all nuts and fruits and place in a large bowl. Add 1/2 the flour mixture to fruit and coat well. Cream the sugar and butter together and add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add the remaining flour mixture along with the preserves, molasses, and orange juice. Stir with a wooden spoon. Mixture will be thick so place into tube pan, one spoonful at a time. Place in oven and cook for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Let it set for about 30 minutes to cool. Wrap in aluminum foil and place in a cool place. This may also be placed in a Christmas tin in the refrigerator. Enjoy. Sometimes I freeze part of this cake to serve at a later date.