INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup butter
- 1 1/2 cups raisins
- 1/2 pound chopped candied citron
- 1/4 pound almonds
- 3/4 cup maraschino cherries, drained
- 2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 2 teaspoons rosewater
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 1/4 cups white sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
- METHOD
- Wash and dry raisins. Cut peel in paper-thin strips. Blanch almonds, and slice lengthwise.
- Slice cherries in half. Combine fruit and nuts in large bowl, and add 1/2 cup of the sifted flour; mix until fruit is well coated.
- Grease and line cake pans with 3 layers of heavy waxed paper, or 2 layers brown paper.
- These round pans are at least 3 inches deep. The small pan is 6 inches across, and the medium size pan is 9 inches across. Grease again. Preheat oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C).
- Cream butter until fluffy; add extracts and lemon rind. Gradually add sugar, mixing until creamy. Beat eggs until light and lemon-colored, and add into creamed mixture. Beat together well.
- Sift together remaining 2 cups flour with the baking powder and salt. Add these dry ingredients alternately with fruit and nut mixture, folding in gently until well combined. Stir in lemon juice.
- Turn batter into prepared cake tins, filling 2/3 full and spreading batter evenly. Bake small cake for 1 1/2 hours, and the medium size cake for 2 hours. Remove from oven. Allow to stand in tin 5 minutes. Turn cake out on wire cake rack to cool.
