Here is my mom’s recipe: dense fruit cake made with dried fruits and nuts soaked in rum. Depending on how much you like rum soaked cake, you can soak it in rum and ripen the baked cake anywhere from three days up to eight weeks for the best flavor. If you do not prefer alcohol, you may use apple juice instead.

What you need: Makes 2-8 inch loaf pans or 2-8 inch round cakes

3 cups dried chopped nuts. You can use any or all of these. Almonds, cashews, walnuts

5 cups dried chopped fruits like cranberries, pineapple, currants, plum, cherries, candied citron peel or candy peel

2 tsp lemon zest

5 tsp fresh lime juice

3/4 to 1 cup dark rum or apple juice

1 cup all purpose flour

1 cup butter

1 cup packed brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup dark molasses or burnt sugar syrup, recipe below

2 Tbsp instant coffee powder

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground cardamom

Burnt sugar syrup recipe

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

Cook sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, without stirring, until it begins to turn golden brown around the edges. Stir to incorporate melted sugar and cook, stirring occasionally, until melted and a deep amber color. Remove from heat and, stirring constantly, gradually add half cup water (caramel will seize). Cook over medium-low heat, stirring, until smooth, about five minutes. Transfer to a jar and cool. It can be stored for up to two weeks, at room temperature.

Directions:Soak the dried fruit and nuts in rum and lime juice for at least 24 hours; store it in an airtight box at room temperature. You can soak them for up to two months in advance; store the soaked fruits in the fridge.

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Butter and flour dust the loaf pan. Line the sides and bottom with parchment paper. Sift the baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, salt and flour together twice. Set aside. Combine the instant coffee powder, milk and molasses together. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar until fluffy. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and vanilla together. Combine the butter mixture with the egg mixture and gently fold until combined.

Pour the flour over the soaked fruit and nuts. Use clean washed and dried hands. Coat all the fruits in the flour. Alternate pouring in little amounts of the flour mixture and molasses. Sprinkle the lemon zest and combine gently with a spatula. The cake mixture will be thick. Pour it into the parchment lined pans, about two thirds full. Bake at 300 degrees F for 50 to 60 minutes. Stick a metal or wooden skewer in the middle of the cake. If it comes out clean, remove them and cool them until they are warm to touch.  Gently poke the top surface of the cake with a fork. Brush it with extra rum if you like. Wrap the entire cake in cheese cloth. Begin soaking the cake with about two tablespoons of rum everyday. Always place it in an airtight container.

You can continue to soak the cake for the next five to 10 days, depending on how intense you would like the flavor of the cake to be. Then wrap the entire cake and cheesecloth in parchment paper, and store in an airtight container at room temperature for a minimum of three days to eight weeks.

Again, aging the cake will entirely depend on how you like it. Happy holidays and season’s greetings…Enjoy!

Reshma Seetharam is a Redmond mother, wife, foodie and web developer. Other than watching her two sons play soccer, nothing excites her more than packing fun, healthy lunches, creating a new recipe or taking on a cake project. Her food blog has subscribers from around the globe. She attributes all her cooking skills to her mother. She creates easier versions of Indian classic dishes as well as fusion cuisine. For recipes and kids lunch ideas, visit her website at www.reshmaseetharam.com.