(Sunken) Fruit Cake

Boys bugged me to make a fruit cake... "... Fruit cake never spoil because insects always eat it when it's rotten..." so said Grannypillar in the Hermie & Wormie's Fruit Cake Christmas cartoon.

So we went on a Fruit Cake recipe hunt. They even agreed to stay home to make it; refusing and declining all my suggestions for an outdoor play! Such was their resolution to have a fruit cake. They even suggested baking the cake and bring it to their uncle's Christmas dinner on the Eve,... "so Mom, we need to bake and try if it is nice to bring" they reasoned.

(how can my cake not be nice, come to think of it!!)

So a fruit cake we baked. I didn't want to add any of those traditional rum and liquor since this is for KIDS. And I didn't want to add any sort of nuts since this, again, is for KIDS. Thus, after much deliberation, I settled on my favorite pound cake and throw in Fruits Mix. Da daaa!!! A fruit cake is born!

What I should have done instead was to chop up the fruits mix! And because I didn't do so, the fruits sunk to the bottom of my cake during baking... Hence the name, Sunken Fruit Cake. *LOL*

Aesthetically, it sure need some improvements. But taste-wise, it's un-beatable!!! Quite unsurpassed! Wahahahahahaha... I am so happy. It tastes better than those I bought in bakery; those are somehow too sweet with a strange metallic after-taste (yucks).

My folks like it. My boys like it. Now it's up to Man to try it.

Will I bake this for my BIL's Christmas Eve dinner? Ya, perhaps. I have still a list of Christmas bakings to do. Shall see which emerge a winner -- to be decided by a jury of Boys.

Ingredients (1 loaf tin):

3 large eggs
3 tbsp milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla essence
150gm sifted cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
150gm white sugar (I cut down to 120gm here)
185gm butter (melted)

Here's what I did:

1. Lightly combine eggs, milk and vanilla essence in a clean small bowl. Set aside.

2. Mix flour, baking powder, sugar and salt together in the mixing bowl.

3. Add butter into flour mixture and half of egg mixture.

4. Mix at low speed till the dry ingredients are moist.

5. Increase speed to medium and beat for 1 minute.

6. Reduce speed to Low, add in 1/2 of remaining egg mixture. Beat for 30 sec.

7. Add in all of remaining egg mixture and continue beating for another 30 sec.

8. Add in chopped fruits mix. Lightly combine them into batter. Pour into base-lined loaf tin.

9. Bake at 175degC for 60 mins. (check cake 3/4 way into baking. If top appears brown enough, tent it lightly and continue its remaining bake time.)

10. Insert toothpick into centre of cake to check its doneness. Once done, let it sit in the tin a short while before overturning it out to cool completely on a rack.

Before all these, pre heat your oven of course. 175degC.

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