Fruitcake ( Also Known As Barb'snuttierthana, Fruitcake)

This is a very moist dark fruitcake made with fresh apples, walnuts, pecans, dried fruit such as cranberries,currents, pineapple, raisins, apricots and cherries. This makes two large 8-inch fruitcakes or four loaf pans. If your dried fruit is "dry" soak in a bit of orange juice for 5-10 minutes before adding to batter. Feel free to halve the recipe. These dark fruitcakes are great keepers and they ship well!

• Ready In: 2 hrs 15 mins
• Serves: 24

Ingredients

• 1⁄2 lb butter or 1⁄2 lb margarine
• 2  cups light brown sugar
• 3  teaspoons  lemon extract
• 4  eggs
• 1  cup molasses
• 2  cups  peeled apples (cut into slices and cooked until soft in the microwave)
• 4 1⁄2 cups flour
• 1  teaspoon baking powder
• 4  teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons allspice
• 1  teaspoon nutmeg
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 1  teaspoon ground cloves
• 1  cup pecans (chopped)
• 1  cup walnut halves
• 1  cup currants
• 1⁄2 cup dark raisin
• 1⁄2 cup golden raisin
• 1  cup dried sweetened cranberries
• 1  cup  dried apricot (roughly chopped)
• 1⁄2 cup  candied pineapple
• 1  cup  candied red cherries

• Topping

• 1  cup pecans
• 1  cup walnuts
• 1  cup  candied cherry

Directions

1. Spray pans with Pam.
2. 2 8-inch springform or Bundt.
3. or 4 loaf pans
4. Flour pans well and tap then discard excess flour.
5. Preheat oven to 325°F.
6. Cream butter until fluffy.
7. Add brown sugar and beat for 1 minute on medium.
8. Add lemon extract, eggs, cooled apples and molasses.
9. Mix flour and other dry ingredients together in a separate bowl.
10. Add 1/2 the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and beat well.
11. Add the rest of the flour mixture and stir until well incorporated.
12. Stir in all the fruit and nuts.
13. Spoon batter into each pan.
14. Top with pecans, cherries and walnuts.
15. Bake at 325F for 1 hour for loaf pans,.
16. 1 hour 15 minutes for others.
17. Let cakes set for 10 minutes.
18. Using a knife, loosen fruitcake from sides of the pan.
19. Open springform latch and remove pan.
20. Invert cake on a plate and with a knife remove pan bottom.
21. Place a cake rack on the fruitcake bottom and invert so the cake cools right side up.
22. Remove plate and let set until cooled completely.
23. Wrap well in plastic and store in an airtight container or foil.