Dark and Moist Fruitcake

My version of a traditional fruitcake, with anything I thought would taste particularly good added in. I found that it was the best after about 9 weeks of aging, so plan ahead, and be prepared to buy a lot of alcohol! The basting really helps make it moist and makes the flavour complex. To stick with a dark colour theme (to complement my "light" fruitcake) I used dark rum, coffee liquor, molasses, brown sugar, and lots of figs and dates. And for a bit of crunch, some walnuts!

You can use different dried fruits, and next time I make this cake I think I'll add more, including some dried apricots and cherries. Still, this cake turned out really well! It was especially popular, I think, because of the copious amounts of coffee liquor that complemented the taste of the molasses and spices really well. I suspect that, if you wanted to try something really unorthodox, you could eat it with soft cheese... something I plan to try myself.

Dark Fruitcake
adapted from chowhound

3 Eggs
3/4 C. Butter (About 170g)
1/4 Tsp. Salt
1 Tsp. Cocoa
1 1/2 C. Flour
1 Tsp. Baking soda
1/2 Tsp. Each cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice
Zest of one lemon and one orange
1 Tsp. Vanilla
1 C. Dark brown sugar
1/4 C. Molasses
2 TBSP. Apricot jam, smooth
1 C. Dates
1 C. Figs
1 1/2 C. Mixed golden and dark raisins
1 C. Walnut pieces
1/2 C. Mixed diced peel
1/3 C. Currants
1/2 C. Dark spiced rum
1/4 C. Brandy (I used apricot brandy)

To Baste:
A generous amount each of dark spiced rum, (apricot) brandy and coffee liquor

Soak snipped fruits in rum 2-5 days in advance.

Prepare two 9'' loaf pans with butter and baking parchment.

Sift together dry ingredients and set aside.
Beat the butter, sugar and molasses together until smooth. Add the vanilla, jam, zest and molasses. Beat in the eggs and mix until homogeneous.
Add the dry ingredients and mix until smooth. Next, add the fruit and nuts and stir in until well-mixed.

Bake at 160℃ for 1 1/2 hours. Let cool before removing from pans and brushing with a mixture of the basting alcohols.

Wrap up in alcohol-soaked cheesecloth and plastic wrap and let ripen for 6-9 weeks in a cool well-ventilated place, unwrapping and brushing with the basting alcohol about once a week. If you check on them and they're already very moist with alcohol (this occurred after 4 weeks of the basting process for me) you can leave them be.

Serve on its own or covered in marzipan once ripe.