EDNA LEWIS'S CHRISTMAS FRUITCAKE

      Title: EDNA LEWIS'S CHRISTMAS FRUITCAKE
  Categories: Xmas, Holidays, Cakes, Fruits
       Yield: 1 Tube cake
  
       1 c  Glazed candied orange peel;
            .  diced
       1 c  Glazed candied lemon peel;
            .  diced
       2 c  Citron; diced
       1 c  Currants
       2 c  Seedless raisins; chopped
     1/2 c  Dry red wine
     1/2 c  Brandy
   3 1/2 c  Flour; all-purpose
       1 ts Ground cinnamon
       2 ts Nutmeg; grated
     1/2 ts Ground cloves
       1 ts Ground allspice
     1/2 ts Ground mace
       1 ts Baking powder
     1/2 ts Salt
       1 c  + 6 Tbsp butter; softened
       2 c  Brown sugar; packed
       5    Eggs; separated
     1/2 c  Sorghum molasses
  
   Mix all the fruit in a large bowl and pour in the wine and brandy.
   Stir gently and set aside to marinate for a few hours.
   
   Butter a 10-inch tube pan or two 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pans and line
   it (or them) with clean parchment paper. Butter the paper.
   
   Sift the flour with the spices twice. Add the baking powder and salt
   and sift again.
   
   Put the butter into a large mixing bowl and cream until satiny. Add
   sugar and, using an electric mixer, cream until light and fluffy.
   Beat the egg yoLlcs slightly and then add them to the bowl. Mix the
   batter well before you start to add the flour-spice mixture. Stir the
   batter as you add the flour, a litde at a time, stirring well after
   each addition. When the flour is thoroughly incorporated, add the
   molasses and stir. Finally, stir in the fruit and any soaking liquid
   in the bowl.
   
   Put the egg whites in a grease-free bowl and beat with a clean beater
   until they hold stiff peaks. Fold them into the batter thor oughly
   and then spoon the batter into the prepared pan (or parns). Cover
   loosely with a clean cloth and let the batter sit overnight in a cool
   place to mellow.
   
   On the next day, heat the oven to 250 degrees. Place the fruitcake on
   the middle rack of the oven and bake for 3 1/2 to 4 hours. After 1
   1/2 hours, cover the pan with a piece of brown paper (do not use
   foil) or set the pan in a paper bag and return it to the oven.
   
   When the cake has baked for 3 1/2 hours, remove it from the oven and
   listen closely for any quiet, bubbling noises. If you "hear'' the
   cake, it needs more baking. Or test the cake with a toothpick or cake
   tester. If the toothpick or tester comes out of the center of the
   cake clean, the cake is ready to take from the oven. Put it on a wire
   rack to cool, still in the pan.
   
   When the cake is completely cool, turn it out of the pan (or pans),
   leaving the brown-paper lining on the cake. Wrap the cake with
   parchment, then aluminum foil, and pack the cake in a tin. Homemade
   fruitcakes need air, so punch a few holes in the lid of the tin or
   set the cover loosely on the tin.
   
   Set the tin in a cool, undisturbed place, and every two or three weeks
   before Christmas, open the foil and sprinkle the cake with a liqueur
   glassful of brandy, wine, or whiskey. The liquor will keep the cake
   moist and flavorful and help preserve it as well.
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