-ICING-
1 lb Raisins; minced 4 1/4 c Flour, cake 1 lb Prunes,
pitted; minced 4 ts Baking powder 1 lb Currants, dried;
minced 1/2 ts Nutmeg, grated 1 lb Cherries, glaced; minced 1/2 ts
Cinnamon 6 oz Lemon peel, glaced; minced 2 c Butter, sweet;
softened 6 oz Orange peel, glaced; minced 10 lg Egg 3/4 l
Passover wine (Manischewitz) 1 tb Vanilla 3/4 l Rum, dark 1
1/2 c Almond paste; if desired 2 lb Sugar, dark brown
2 lb Sugar, confectioners; sifted 2 tb Lemon juice 6 lg Egg
white; room temp Drages; for decoration
This cake is certainly dark; it’s described as closer to black than
brown in color. It is served at Christmas in the Virgin Islands, as
well as at special occasions such as weddings. In a large bowl, mix
all the fruits thoroughly with the wine and the rum; let the fruit
macerate, covered, at room temperature for at least two weeks. In a
heavy skillet combine one pound of the brown sugar and 1 cup water.
Bring to a boil over moderate heat, stirring until the sugar is
dissolved, and gently boil the syrup, swirling the skillet
occasionally, for a few minutes, or until it is reduced to 1 3/4
cups. Let the syrup cool; reserve. Sift the flour, baking powder,
cinnamon and nutmeg together into a bowl. In the large bowl of an
electric mixer cream together the remaining brown sugar and the
butter until it is fluffy; then beat in the eggs, one at a time,
beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla, the flour
mixture, and 1 1/3 cups of the burnt sugar syrup, reserving the
remaining syrup for another use. In another large bowl, combine well
the flour mixture and the fruit mixture and divide the batter between
two buttered and floured 10″ springform pans. Bake the cakes in the
middle of a preheated 350 F. oven for two hours, or until a toothpick
inserted in the centers comes out with some crumbs adhering to it.
(The centers of these cakes will be quite moist.) Let the cakes cool
in the pans on a rack, remove the sides and bottoms of the pans, and
wrap the cakes in foil or wax paper. Let the cakes stand at room
temperature for a week. Roll out half the almond paste between sheets
of plastic wrap to form a 10″ round and remove the top sheet of
plastic wrap. Fit the almond paste layer over one cake, trimming the
edge if necessary, and remove the other sheet of plastic wrap. Roll
out and fit the remaining almond paste onto the remaining cake in the
same manner. ICING: Using an electric mixer, beat 4 cups of the
confectioners’ sugar with the egg whites and lemon juice until the
mixture will hold a soft peak. Beat in the remaining sugar, and beat
the icing until it will hold a stiff peak. Transfer two cups of the
icing to a pastry bag fitted with a decorative tip, spread the
remaining icing on the tops and sides of the cakes with a long metal
spatula, and pipe the icing in the pastry bag decoratively onto the
cakes. Arrange the drages on the cakes. Makes two cakes. FROM Laurie
Colwin
Yields
24 servings