ROOT Recipe: Holiday FROOT Cake
Each holiday season our resident Art in the Age chef and illustrator, The Reverend Michael Alan, creates delicious new recipes using AITA spirits . This year, he shows us how to bake FROOT cakes, perfect to bring to all of your holiday parties!
Cakes:
1 Cup Butter, softened
1 Cup Brown Sugar
4 Eggs
3 Cups Flour, divided
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Clove
1/2 teaspoon Cardamom
1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
2 Cups Candied Fruit (we used equal parts candied orange peel and citron)
1 Cup Dates
1 Cup Raisins
1 Cup Dried Pineapple, diced
1 Cup Pecans
1 Cup Walnuts
Zest and Juice of an Orange
ROOT Syrup:
1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Water
1/3 Cup ROOT
Heat oven to 350ºF. Grease five 5″x3″x2.5″ loaf pans, line with parchment and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter with the brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time incorporating each into the mixture.
Combine all of the fruit, nuts and orange zest in a bowl and mix with 1/4 cup of the flour.
Sift the remaining flour with the salt, baking powder and spices. Working in thirds, add the dry ingredients to the wet alternating with the orange juice. The batter will be thick. Once blended, add all the fruit and nuts and mix very well.
Divide the batter into the pans and bake until a cake tester comes out clean, about 45-60 minutes.
While the cakes bake, add the sugar and water into a small sauce pan over medium high heat. Cook until the the sugar dissolves and the syrup takes on a light golden color. Remove from the heat, add the ROOT and set aside.
Once the cakes come out of the oven, prick the cakes all over with a skewer while still in the pans. Pour the syrup evenly over the warm cakes, a little at a time, allowing the cakes to absorb the syrup before adding more.
Cool completely before slicing. Wrap remaining cakes tightly in plastic.
