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La Belle Cuisine
Virginia's Precious Fruit Cake
Desserts to Die For
by Marcel Desaulniers, 1995,
Kenan Books, Inc./Simon & Schuster Onc.
1 pound candied cherries
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 pound unsalted butter, cut into 16 1-ounce pieces
2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
6 large eggs
2 teaspoons minced lemon zest
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 cups toasted pecan halves
Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Place the candied cherries in a 3-quart
stainless steel bowl. Sprinkle 1/4 cup flour over the cherries, then gently
toss the
cherries to coat lightly. Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer
fitted with a paddle. Beat on medium for 3 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Increase the speed to high and beat for 4 more minutes, then once again scrape down the
sides of the bowl. Add eggs one
at a time, beating on high for 1 minute and scraping down
the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add the lemon zest and the vanilla extract and
beat on high for 1 minute. Operate the mixer on low while gradually adding the remaining
flour and the salt. Allow to mix until combined, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides
of the bowl. Add the cherries and 3 cups pecans and mix on low for 15 seconds. Remove the
bowl from the mixer and use a rubber spatula to finish mixing the batter, until thoroughly
combined. Immediately transfer the fruit cake batter to the tube pan, then individually
place the remaining 1 cup of pecan halves, smooth side down, onto the top of the batter,
using all of the remaining pecans (gently press down on each pecan to set it ever
so slightly into the batter). Bake on the center rack of
the preheated oven until a wooden
skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 2 1/2 hours. Remove the
cake from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for 1 hour at room temperature. Unmold the
cake from the pan. Allow the cake to cool at room temperature for 1 additional hour before
slicing.
Serves 16 to 24.
The Chef's Touch: Virginia Warren is not the stereotypical
mother-in-law,
and her fruit cake is not the ubiquitous dark, liquor-soaked version that
has the life expectancy of a sequoia. Virginia's cake is as delicious as she
is beautiful
in both appearance and temperament
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