The iced fruitcake looks like something I might have to try this year. As long as it's dark, full of fruit & nuts with not much cake, how can it be anything but delicious? This is my favorite recipe for a dark fruitcake. Over the years, I've substituted all kinds of fruits & nuts & it always turn out great. Maybe the rum helps! RUM CROCK FRUITCAKE Makes 1 Bundt (+ 1 mini loaf pan) or 2 3x5x9 loaf cakes 1 lb dried currants 1 lb dark raisins ½ lb golden raisins ½ lb citron or dried fruit 1 C filberts or almonds or figs ½ lb chopped dates (or pecan halves) 1 C dried or candied cherries (dried cranberries work just as well) ½ C candied citrus peel 3 C (a fifth) of Dark Rum (cheap is okay, but it needs to be dark) ---------------------------- ½ lb sweet butter, softened 2 C packed dark brown sugar 5 large eggs 2 C flour 2 t. baking powder --------------------------- Grind enough whole spices to make these quantities, mix & set aside: 1 t. ground cloves 1 t. ground cinnamon ½ t. ground nutmeg 1 t. ground allspice ½ t. ground mace Mix all the fruits & nuts together in a crock or a ceramic or glass bowl. Stir in the rum (adding more, if needed, to cover), & let stand, loosely covered, in a cool place for at least 3 weeks. (A day or 2 has always been okay for me.) When you are ready to prepare the cake, preheat the oven to 275 F. & place a large shallow pan of water on a lower rack. Prepare pans by greasing, lining with brown paper or parchment, & greasing lightly again. Drain the contents of the rum crock (discard the rum or use in another batch of marinade if making additional fruitcakes) & set aside. Cream the butter with the sugar until fluffy & stir in eggs, one at a time, blending well. Sift together the flour, baking powder & spices. Sift half of the flour into the butter mixture, mixing well. Gradually add the fruits/nuts, alternating with the remaining flour mixture & blending thoroughly. Put batter into pans & bake for about 2 ½ hours (more for a bundt pan) or until a cake tester comes out clean & the edges shrink from the pan. Cover the cake lightly with pieces of foil if it browns too quickly (usually after 1 ½ hours). Remove the cake & cool in pan for about 1 hour. Turn onto a cake rack & remove the paper. When the cake has cooled, wrap in foil & store in an airtight container to age for at least 1 month before serving. (Its also excellent after 1 week of aging as DH is too impatient to wait longer).

Pour some brandy or sherrry wine over the top, wrap in saran and foil and allow it to sit....repeat. A one oz bottle contains 2 tablespoons, so you were short a tablespoon of liquid to begin with. I suppose you could add something like apple juice, but I would be afraid it might mold. Or you could use light rum....that would give a different taste though. Maybe I'll do that today..... Linda C

Finally getting back to this thread! LOL! Here's the recipe as written.....and made by me for a lot of years. But in recent years I have modifyed it. You will notice that it is basically 3 cups of nuts and 3 cups of fruit...plus 1/2 cup raisins. So I make up the 3 cups of nuts out of pecans, walnuts and hazel nuts....I don't particularly like Brazil nuts and I love hazel nuts! And I don't like marischino cherries at all.....so I make up my 3 cups of fruit with candied pineapple, cut up pieces of dried apricots....some candied peel and candied cherries and dried cranberrys.....and of course the raisins....got to have raisins!! Then proceed as directed Fruit cake....makes 1 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf 1 1/2 c. shelled whole brazil nuts 1 1/2 walnut halves ( I use 3/4 c walnuts and 3/4 c. pecans) 1 c. pitted dates. 1 c. candied orange peel ( I also, substitute some candied pineapple for some of the orange peel) 1/2 c red marischino cherries, drained a long time!! 1/2 c green marischino cherries...NOT the mint flavored kind!! also drained 1/2 white sultana raisins 3/4 c sifted flour 3/4 c. sugar 1/2 t. baking powder 1/2 t. salt 3 eggs 1 t. vanilla Mix fruit and nuts. mix dry ingredients and sift over the fruit and nuts, tossing to coat evenly. Beat eggs until light and fluffy, add vanilla, and add to the fruit mix, tossing to mix but gently!! Butter a loaf pan ( actually you should have done this before you started!) line it with parchment and butter the parchment. Place mixture in pan, pressing down to eliminate air bubbles and bake 300deg. for 1/1/2 to 1 3/4 hrs....test with a toothpick. I soak with brandy and wrap in cheese cloth and foil and a plastic bag and store in the refrig. for at least a month. Keeps for years as long as you replenish the brandy from time to time to keep it from molding! Of course you can save some of the nut halves to decorate the top before baking if you want to be fancy schmancy. Enjoy!! Linda

First I soak the fruit overnight in a few tablespoons of brandy before using it in the cake. Then I put the baked cake in a container and pour a couple of tablespoons of brandy over it every few days until Christmas. If I was going to ice it I would brush it with apricot jam, cover it with a layer of almond paste, let it dry out for a day, then a layer of fondant or royal icing.