Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Grandma's Love

 

Ahh the smells and taste's of a by gone era... Don't ya just love it when you get a whiff of something (good that is :-) )that brings those fond memories of your childhood, wrapped up in grandma hugs, being pampered with hugs and kisses and waiting in anticipation for those special treats been baked in the oven.... the smells tantalizing your taste buds.... 20 minutes felt like forever and 1 hour was a lifetime, especially when you had to wait!!
I remember fruit cake was a staple in my grandma's kitchen and to tell you the truth sometimes it may have been bought or it may of been made but all the same it brings fond memories.... especially at christmas time! The shocking part of this tale is that for most of my life i have loathed fruitcake...... yes and it's all because of SULTANA'S! . I have missed out on many a delicious fruity, boozy ( that probably was a good thing as a child) fruit cakes, christmas puddings, sultana buns, muffins, biscuits because of my severe aversion to those juicy and plump black things your call sultana's.

I remember one day as a child thinking i would give a nice pink iced sultana bun a go while getting looked after by my batchelor uncle with my brother. It was the pink icing that enticed me to even think about trying it and the first bite didnt' seem so bad until i hit a "juicy" mine field of sultana's. Blergh!!!...as my reaction but i didn't have the guts to tell my uncle i didn't want to eat anymore! So being the clever child that i thought i was... decided to pick them out one by one.... (Without my poor uncle noticing) and throw them under the table. Well i can't remember if it was my brother that dobbed or my uncle was smarter than me ( i think it was the latter) and noticed what i was doing.... and i got found out and severely scolded! I don't think i tried any sultana delights for a long time..... Until i met my hubby who enticed me and made me not only fall in love with him but also sultana's.... and a lot of other foods i thought i hated! (It was physcological i say!)

This boiled fruit cake is a classic flavoured, simple cake full of those good things i now call sultana's! The recipe calls for a cup of cold tea... which really adds a nice colour and flavour to the cake. I would recommend using a good strong black tea such as our English Breakfast Supreme or Ceylon Orange Pekoe.


Granny's Boiled Fruit Cake


Ingredients:
375g Packet Mixed Fruit
1 Tsp Mixed Spice
1 Cup Cold Tea (I recommend our English breakfast)
1 Tsp Bi-Carb soda
2 Well Beaten Eggs
Vanilla (Or a splash of rum or brandy)
120g Butter
1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup SR Flour
1 Cup Plain Flour
Pinch Salt


First Measure those delicious little juicy sultana's (mixed fruit)

Next...................

Add Butter, spices, sugar, bicarb and salt and vanilla essence to a saucepan

Add 1 cup of cold tea... (see our recommendations above)

And then........

Boil for 2 Minutes... set aside to cool for 5 minutes.

Then.........

Fold in beaten eggs and sifted flours.

Bake in a 20cm tin at 160 degrees for 1 Hour or until a skewer comes out clean! 
Cool before removing from tin. Serve with a slather of butter!




Simply Tea Recommendations: This fruity cake calls for a simple flavoured tea and i would recommend none other than our "Simply Tea" blend. It is a good strong fine leaf blend of Ceylon tea . Simply delicious. It is only $7.00 for 100g or $2.00 for a sample bag. Perfect for an afternoon tea accompanied with this delicious and fruity boiled fruit cake.

Simply Tea Blend

Happy Sipping.... and eating! :-)

 P.s. If you loved this recipe... check out our Mini Chocolate Raison Cupcakes.... Yum

5W7GTWEFCEGF

Visit Us At: The Simply Tea Shop ~ "For The Love Of Tea" ~

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