French Holiday Fruit Pound Cake Recipes

Steps:

• Heat brandy in a 1-quart saucepan over low heat until warm, then remove from heat and stir in dried fruit. Cover and let stand 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 325°F with rack in middle. Invert bottom of springform pan and lock on side. Generously butter pan and dust with flour, knocking out excess.
• Finely grind 3/4 cup almonds with 1/4 cup sugar in a food processor, then whisk together with flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
• Beat butter and remaining 3/4 cup sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition (batter will appear curdled), then add vanilla, zest, and fruit with brandy and beat until thoroughly combined, about 2 minutes.
• At low speed, mix in flour mixture until incorporated. Spoon batter into pan, smoothing it, and top with remaining 1/3 cup almonds.
• Bake until a long wooden pick inserted into center of cake comes out clean, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours. Run a thin metal spatula around side of cake, then cool in pan on a rack 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, melt marmalade with liqueur in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring, then strain glaze through a sieve into a small bowl, discarding solids.
• Loosen side of cake with thin metal spatula again, then remove side of pan and loosen bottom of cake. Transfer cake from pan to rack and brush glaze over top of cake.
• Cool cake completely, about 3 hours.

Steps:

• 1. Preheat oven to 350^. Butter and flour or spray the spring form pan. With an electric mixer, beat the olive oil,alternately with the(first remove 2 T. sugar and set aside) remaining sugar, until the oil has been absorbed. Beat on high until fluffy. Add egg yolks and continue beating to blend well. Slowly add flour,mixing well after each addition. Add the vanilla and almond, if using, and stir to combine. Set mixture aside. --- Add salt to egg whites and beat to soft peaks. sprinkle the reserved 2 T. sugar over whites and beat until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the batter until well combined. --- Pour half the batter into the prepared pan. Distribute about 3/4 of the chopped fruit over the batter, then top with remaining batter. Now sprinkle remainder of fruit over top of batter and Bake in oven for about 45 minutes or until cake is golden brown and the sides are pulled away from the pan and a toothpick tests clean. Remove to wire rack and let cool , before removing from pan.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch (23-cm) loaf pan, dust it with flour, and tap out any excess. Line the bottom with a rectangle of parchment paper.
• To make the cake, in a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a bowl by hand), beat together the butter, 1 cup (200 g) sugar, and the orange zest on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes.
• In a small bowl, beat together the eggs and vanilla. With the mixer running, slowly dribble the egg mixture into the butter mixture, stopping the mixer and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed, until the eggs are completely incorporated. (The mixture may look curdled, which is normal.)
• Using a rubber spatula, stir the flour mixture into the butter-sugar mixture by hand just until combined. Don't overmix. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let cool about 15 minutes.
• While the cake is cooling, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, very gently stir together the passion fruit juice and 1/3 cup (65 g) sugar. Don't let the sugar dissolve.
• Loosen the cake from the loaf pan by running a knife around the sides of the cake. Invert the warm cake out of the pan, peel off the parchment paper, and turn it right side up onto a plate.
• Using a wooden skewer, pierce the top of the cake all the way through to the bottom about 50 times. Spoon half of the glaze over the top of the cake. Turn the cake on each of its sides, spooning the rest of the glaze over so that the cake is evenly coated. Sop up the glaze that collects in the plate by rubbing the bottom and sides of the cake in it.
• Serving
• Serve the sliced cake just as it is or with a compote of fresh tropical fruit or berries.
• Storage
• Store the cake loosely wrapped in plastic wrap, to keep the glaze crisp.
• Variation
• To make ORANGE POUND CAKE, replace the passion fruit juice in the glaze with 1/2 cup (125 ml) freshly squeezed orange juice.
• tip
• To strain fresh passion fruit pulp, halve the fruits, scoop the pulp into a mesh strainer set over a bowl, and press the pulp to separate the seeds from the juice. You can find frozen passion fruit purée in Latin markets as well as online (see Resources, page 270).

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter, cream cheese and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla. Sift flour together with baking powder and salt; stir into creamed mixture. Fold in cherries and 1/2 cup nuts. Sprinkle remaining nuts into a greased 10-in. fluted tube pan. Pour batter into pan. Bake at 325° for about 70 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool cake in pan 5 minutes on wire rack before removing from pan. Cool thoroughly. Make a glaze with confectioners' sugar and milk; drizzle over cake. Garnish top with cherries and pecans if desired.

Steps:

• For the candied peels:
• For this recipe, the peels include not only the colored parts of the skin but the pith as well. Cut wedges through the skin of the citrus fruits, pull the skin off the fruit, and dice it into pieces about 3/8 inch thick-you will have about 2¼ cups of diced peel. (The flesh of the fruit can be used for juice or in salads.) You may also collect and use the peels left over from squeezing oranges or grapefruits in the morning.
• Put the diced fruit peel in a saucepan with 6 cups of cold water, bring to a boil, and cook over high heat for about 1 minute, then drain in a colander. Wash the pieces for a few seconds under cold tap water. Rinse the saucepan with cold water, return the diced fruit peel to the pan, and add another 6 cups of water. Repeat the boiling, draining, and washing procedure, and wash the saucepan again. This blanching process removes the bitterness from the peel. Finally, return the diced peel to the saucepan with the sugar and 1½ cups water, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, and boil gently for 15 to 20 minutes, until reduced to a very syrupy liquid.
• Add the dried apricots, dried pears, dried peaches, and raisins to the candied peels and syrup. Mix in the rum, Armagnac, or cognac. At this point, the mixture can be placed in a jar and kept, refrigerated, almost indefinitely.
• To make the cake:
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Beat the soft butter and sugar for 1 minute in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a flat beater. Add the eggs, and beat for 30 seconds. Add the orange juice, salt, and flour, and beat for 10 to 20 seconds, just enough to incorporate. Using a spatula, fold in the candied and dried fruits.
• Cut a strip of parchment paper long enough to fit the length of a 6-to-8-cup loaf pan and extend 1½ inches beyond it at either end. (This makes it easy to unmold the cake after baking.) Butter the paper and the mold, bottom and sides, and position the paper in the mold, buttered side up, pressing to make it adhere to the bottom and sides at either end. Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and smooth the top with a spatula.
• Place the loaf pan on a cookie sheet, and bake in the 350-degree oven for approximately 45 minutes. Reduce the heat to 325 degrees, and cook for another 60 to 70 minutes, until completely set inside.
• Allow the cake to cool in the pan on a rack. When cool, unmold, wrap in plastic wrap and/or aluminum foil, and keep either frozen or in the refrigerator, where it will keep for a couple of weeks.
• To serve:
• Cut into ½-inch slices, and serve. This cake is a nice accompaniment to cream custard but can be served alone or with fresh fruit and nuts.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream the butter, shortening, cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in extracts. Combine the dry ingredients; add to creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition. , Pour into a greased and floured 10-in. fluted tube pan. Bake at 325° for 1 hour and 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve with strawberry topping and fresh strawberries if desired.

Steps:

• Cream shortening and sugar together.
• Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition.
• Add flour, salt, mace. Mix again.
• Add vanilla and beat. Add remaining ingredients and mix very well.
• Bake in a greased loaf pan for 60 -80 minutes with the oven temp set at 350*.
• **NOTE: To make a basic pound cake, the use above recipe, OMITTING the fruit and follow directions for baking/preparing.**.

Steps:

• Cream shortening and add the sugar slowly, beating in well.
• Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
• Add vanilla and add the sifted dry ingredients, mixing well.
• Stir in citron and nuts.
• Bake in 2 regular sized greased loaf pans at 325* for 1 hour.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300°. Combine fruit and nuts. In another bowl, cream shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture and mix well. Pour over fruit and nuts; stir to coat. , Transfer to a greased and floured 10-in. tube pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 2 hours. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Wrap tightly and store in a cool place. Bring to room temperature before serving; slice with a serrated knife.