X mas Plum Cake

Ingredients

For Soaking : I soaked the dry fruits in Rum for 1 Year

Mixed fruits - 3 cups
Rum/Brandy - 1.5 cups

For Caramel:
Sugar - 1/2 cup
Water - 1 tbsp
Warm water - 1/4 cup

For Cake:
Plain flour (maida) - 2 cups
Baking powder - 1 1/4 tsp
Baking soda - 1/2 tsp
Sugar - 1 cup+ 2 tbsp
Unsalted Butter - 250 gms (1 cup + 2 tbsp, approx) @ room temp
Eggs - 4 @ room temp
Vanilla essence - 2 tsp
Jam - 1 tbsp (Mixed Fruit)
Liquid Glucose - 1 tbs

For Spice Powder:
Cloves - 2
Cardamom - 2
Cinnamon - a small piece
Nutmeg - a small piece

Preparation

1. Soaking of Fruits :  I soaked it for almost 1 Year  Try to soak it for a minimum of 1 week, at least. Shake the jar of soaked fruits once in a while.( I used a mixed fruit packet from Super Market)

2. Caramel Preparation : Combine 1/2 cup sugar & 1 tbsp water in a sauce pan. Heat it & let the sugar melt. When the color of the melted sugar becomes dark brown, remove the pan from fire & add 1/4 cup warm water to this. You need to be very careful at this stage since the water tends to splash & can cause burns. Bring it back to the heat & boil for a few more mins, 3-4 mins. Remove from fire & let it cool completely. You can prepare the caramel in advance & refrigerate it. (If the Caramel is over burned it will give you bitter taste.)

3. Spice Powder : Grind all the spices with a pinch of sugar, to a fine powder & keep aside.

4. Cake Preparation:
                 1.Preheat the oven @ 180 C for 10-15 mins, before baking.
                 2.Drain the soaked fruits & keep aside. Retain 4 tbsp from the drained liquor. Toss the drained                            
                    fruits in 1-2 tbsp of flour.(This will prevent the fruits from sinking to the bottom of the cake).
                3.Sift the plain flour with baking powder & baking soda.
                4.Powder the sugar & keep aside.
                5.Separate the yolks & white of the eggs.
                6.Beat egg whites till soft peaks form. Keep aside.
                7.Beat the egg yolks & add the softened butter to it. Beat it till it forms a smooth paste.
                8.Add powdered sugar to this,gradually. Beat after each addition.
                9.When it becomes smooth add vanilla essence & cooled caramel & spice powder &beat again.                                            
               10.Add the sifted flour in 2 batches. Beat after each addition. Add jam ,liquid glucose & combine.
               11. Fold in the beaten egg whites in 2 parts & combine till no white streaks are visible
               12. Fold in the soaked fruits & 4 tbsp of retained liquor.
               13. Grease the baking dish line with baking paper. Pour the batter into the prepared tins.
               14.Bake in the pre heated oven for 40-45 mins or until the skewer inserted comes out clean. The          
                    baking time can vary depending on the oven & also the size of the tin used.
               15. Alcohol free version:
               16. Soak 3 cups of fruits in 1.5 cups of fresh orange juice. Leave it overnight @ room temp.The rest of the recipe is same.

 Icing :
           1.Vanilla Icing Glaze(Green Color- 2 cake ) - http://smartmaa.blogspot.com/2013/01/vanilla-     icing-glaze.html
          2. Fondant Icing - http://smartmaa.blogspot.com/2011/12/fondant-icing-recipe.html