Custard Fruit Cake

[cookie1]

Custard Fruit Cake
Ingredients
250g butter
500g flour
250g sugar
2 teaspoons carb soda
1 teaspoon mixed spice
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1kg dried fruits (the recipe actually requests Australian dried fruits!)
426 ml milk
 2 Australian eggs!!!
½ teaspoon vanilla essence
½ teaspoon almond essence
Preparation
Prepare a large square or round tin by lining base and sides with paper,
Set oven to moderate.
Place flour and spices into bowl.
Add butter and mix speed 3/4 for up to 10 seconds. Simply rub the butter into the flour and spices.
Add sugar and combine, speed 3, 5 seconds.
Remove and place in a large bowl.
Add fruit to this dry mix and combine.
Place the milk and eggs into the bowl. Make a custard by cooking at 90 ^0, Speed 3/4 for about 7 minutes. If this needs to be thicker add extra time.
Add essences and combine, speed 3, 5 seconds.
Add the custard mixture to the dry mixture and combine by hand.
Turn into the prepared cake tin.(I used a 9 inch square tin).
The original recipe stated to cook for 3 hours, however I found this to be far too much and cooked for around 1 hour.
It is suggested that you not cut this cake for a week.
I found this recipe when I was looking through some recipes IU had collected over 30 years ago. It stated that the recipe comes from Australian Prize Winning Recipes by Margaret Fulton and Ted Moloney. It won 100 pounds in a competition. It was listed as a new technique in cake making. The measurements were in Imperial measure, but I have converted them. A lady called Pat Smith bought the cookbook for one shilling at a garden fete in Sussex about 12 years before this was printed. She said she had no idea she would end up in Australia. I appear to have cut it out of an old copy of The Sunday Times.

[Cornish Cream]

It looks delicious Cookie, so full of juicy dried fruits. 😋

[Cuilidh]

I would love to hear how this tastes after sitting for one week.

[judydawn]

Let us know what it tastes like when you cut it cookie, it sounds very interesting and easy to make. Any more interesting recipes from 30 years ago? 

[cookie1]

The cake has a lovely flavour. I divided it into quarters and wrapped them. We took some away with us and left some at home. We didn't leave it for a week though, almost.

[Cuilidh]

One question ... how did you get the lining paper so neat and tidy 

[cookie1]

I just cut out 2 baswes and for the sides I pull off a long bit of glad bake and fold it in half lengthways. I then spray the sides of the tin and put the glad bake around the edges with the fold down. Is that clear........as mud probably?

[Cuilidh]

Thanks .... I think I'll experiment

[Bedlam]

Cookie I used to love that feature in the Sunday times. I still cook some recipes I found in there, the apple pie is a regular at our house and was a farmers recipe. Nice having a story with a recipe


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[alisonjones]

This sounds so yum!

[Cuilidh]

Cookie, do you think that this would work as (larg'ish) muffins?  If so, what would you suggest for cooking times and temperatures?

[cookie1]

I'd use the same oven temperature Marina and maybe keep an eye on the muffins from about 20 minutes or so. Maybe even less.

[Cuilidh]

Thanks 

[Cuilidh]

Sory to plague you with my questions, Cookie ... another option that I have just stumbled across.  Quirky Jo has a varoma steamed Christmas pudding recipe.  I would be more comfortable steaming than trying to successfully make your lovely cake in my very unreliable oven.  Do you think this would work?

[cookie1]

I don't see why not. Certainly give it a go. Tenina actually has a recipe that steams cakes and then just finishes them off in the oven. You can always add custard and make it dessert.