Victorian Plumcake
From peetabear 14 years agoIngredients
- 2 cups raisins shopping list
- 1 cup golden raisins shopping list
- 1/2 cup dried currants shopping list
- 1/2 cup dried apricots, finely chopped shopping list
- 1/2 cup candied cherries, chopped shopping list
- 1/2 cup candied peel, orange and lemon shopping list
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds shopping list
- 1/2 cup sherry or brandy shopping list
- 2 cups butter shopping list
- 1 cup soft brown sugar shopping list
- 1/4 cup sugar shopping list
- 1 tablespoon molasses shopping list
- Grated rind of 1 orange shopping list
- Grated rind of 1 lemon shopping list
- 1/4 teaspoon each of cinnamon, nutmeg, shopping list
- ginger, ground cloves and mace shopping list
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract shopping list
- 5 eggs shopping list
- 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon enriched flour shopping list
- peach or apricot wine for soaking cake shopping list
- One round 10-inch baking pan, 4-inches deep shopping list
- (a springform cake pan is good) shopping list
How to make it
- Mix together the first seven ingredients in a bowl. Pour on the sherry or brandy and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and let set overnight.
- Butter the entire baking pan well. Cut parchment paper to size, and press in place to cover the inside of the pan. Cut two or three 8-inch thick brown paper strips (grocery bag paper is good). Tie the paper strips around the outsides of the pan with string. There should be an overlap of 3 or 4 inches. Cut a 12 to14-inch circle of brown paper and tuck this into the overlapping paper to form a "roof" that protects the cake from browning too soon. Preheat your oven to 275 degrees F.
- In another (large) bowl, or food processor, cream well together the butter and sugars. Add the molasses, the grated rinds, spices and vanilla. Then add the beaten eggs alternately with the flour. The batter should be soft but not liquid, and should drop from the spoon in a soft mass. Add the fruit mixture and stir to distribute evenly. Pour into your prepared pan.
- Bake in oven for 1-1/2 hours at 275 degrees F. Reduce heat to 250 degrees F. And bake for 4 hours more. One hour before it's done check the top of the cake. If it's not too brown, you may remove the paper "roof." Otherwise leave it on. Test for doneness by inserting a toothpick in the center of the cake. It should be crumbly—not sticky.
- Allow the cake to cool in the pan overnight. Turn the pan upside down on a rack after the first ten minutes of cooling, to keep the cake moist.
- The next day remove the pan and the parchment paper very carefully. Stick the cake all over with an ice pick or some other sharp, thin pointed object. Then spoon the apricot wine on and around the cake. Allow it to soak into the cake for a few minutes. Then turn the cake over and do the other side. Leave loosely covered for half an hour, then wrap in clean waxed paper and store in a tin in a cool, dry place. Over the next few days (or couple of weeks), you can repeat the wine soaking process a few times.
- Plum Cake is best made a month or more before Christmas. It becomes more flavorful and rich the longer it sits. It will keep for a least 6 months (and as long as six years) in an airtight tin.
People Who Like This Dish 2
- midgelet Whereabouts, Unknown
- joe1155 Munchen, DE
- juels Clayton, NC
- dragonwings647 Duchesne, UT
- victoriaregina USA, VA
- mbeards2 Omaha, NE
- peetabear Mid-hudson Valley, NY
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The Rating
Reviewed by 5 people-
How could I not like Victoria(n) Plum Cake? But it truly sounds deliscious. Saved and my 5.
'SOUSED' how funny but true!victoriaregina in USA loved it -
This does sound wonderful! All those fruits and spices in here...mmmmm!
juels in Clayton loved it -
yes, sounds wonderful!
midgelet in Whereabouts loved it
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