Easter Fruit Cake
I’m really motivated by the recent weather change in Oregon. Lately it’s been warmer though not necessarily sunnier. Feels more like spring. I’m happy to see lots of flowers blooming and the color of the landscape is really changing. Springtime in Oregon is predictably still wet since we’ll have showers here and there, but it’s just different from the last 2 months.
So here I am…happily baking something for spring which coincidentally goes hand-in-hand with Easter celebration. I don’t usually do big baking or cooking during Easter week, but most of the time I bake something that celebrates Easter or at least that say spring is here. Just last year I remember that I baked Hot Cross Buns. Good recipe and yummy result.
I immediately drawn to one recipe in Annie Bell’s book, Gorgeous Cakes, which I think is specifically for participating in the food blog event hosted by Julia at A Slice of Cherry. She suggested that it’s time to bake something with Easter theme in it.
The cake itself I believe is more of British tradition because it’s a fruit cake, but what made me chose the recipe was the color of the frosting and the embelishment for the cake itself. It screamed Spring! I love how the yellow frosting cheers up the cake and the pastel color of the chocolate eggs is a match to the frosting. I don’t usually stack lots of candies in my pantry but trust me, this week there’re a few bags of chocolate egg candies in it
So here’s my contribution to Easter this year and hope this will make everyone smiles when they look at the pictures. Happy Easter!
Easter Fruit Cake
Makes 20
Cake:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cubed
1 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs, plus 1 egg yolk
1/3 cup medium sherry (or do like I did: 1/6 cup medium sherry and 1/6 cup Grand Marnier)
1 1/3 cup chopped dried fruit (I used lemon peel, orange peel, candied pineapple and dried apricot)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
Frosting:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
10 ounces (1 1/4 cups) 1/3-less fat cream cheese
3-4 drops of yellow food coloring
Chocolate mini eggs for decorating
Preheat the oven to 350°F and butter and flour an 11×7-inch baking pan. Place the butter and sugar in a mixer with paddle attachment and cream until very pale and fluffy. Add the eggs and the yolk one at a time, scraping down the bowl if necessary. Incorporate the sherry (and Grand Marnier, if using) and continue to process for a few more minutes. Pour this mixture into a large bowl. Toss the dried fruit with a ittle flour to coat it. Sift the remaining flour and baking powder over the cake batter and gently fold in, then add the fruit and lemon zest. Transfer it to the prepared pan, smoothing the surface, and bake for 30 minutes or until it is golden and shrinking from the sides. Let it cool in the pan for a few minutes, then unhinge the sides, turn it out onto a wire rack, and let it cool.
To make the frosting, place the butter and confectioners’ sugar in a mixer with paddle attachment and blend until really creamy. Add the cream cheese and thoroughly beat with the butter and sugar mixture, then add a few drops of yellow food coloring until the frosting is evenly yellow.
Place the cake the rightside up on a tray. Smooth the frosing over the top using a spatula, and let rest in a cool place for 1 hour for the frosting to set. The cake can be made a day in advance, loosely covered with plastic wrap and stored in a cool place. Shortly before serving, decorate it with mini eggs in whatever fashion takes your fancy. Serve it cut into squares.
Source: adapted from Gorgeous Cakes by Annie Bell
O dear, these cakes are lovely! Cakes and pastries are something I’m never good at
Oww..this one is easy, trust me
Comment by kEV — April 6, 2007 @ 12:14 am
Very beautiful cake El…
Happy Easter.
Thank you, sama-sama ya…
Comment by vania — April 6, 2007 @ 7:56 am
I’m definately smiling! Those cakes are so, so pretty, I wish I could reach into the screen and take one! Thank you so much for entering
Thank you for hosting a wonderful event, Julia! I can’t wait to see the round-up.
Comment by Julia — April 6, 2007 @ 12:28 pm
looks yummy…. Happy Spring baking ya say…. and Happy Easter to you too…hugs
same to you….
Comment by coni — April 7, 2007 @ 6:36 am
Beautiful cake! I love the colors colors…both inside the cake and in the frosting!
thanks for visiting me back! i really think the cake brighten up my day!
Comment by Nicole — April 9, 2007 @ 12:58 am
This is beautiful, Eliza! I love the little eggs on top, so cute!
Comment by Patricia Scarpin — April 9, 2007 @ 11:01 am
I was really drawn to your blog when I saw this picture on Julia’s website. This dessert is just so beautiful and screams spring. Well done.
Thank you for visiting my blog! that’s the reason I chose to do this cake, it just sang spring
Comment by Cheryl — April 13, 2007 @ 6:53 pm
Oh YUM! I too found your site through Julia’s contest. So many wonderful entries!
thank you for your comment and visit. i better check the round-up soon
Comment by Ovens to Betsy — April 13, 2007 @ 7:16 pm
Oh! I must say – they are so beautiful! They really are even prettier than those in original picture in that book! (I just bought it here in Finland, translated. The translation is bad, because the one who did the job didn’t know how to change ounces to grams, and all the measurements are wrong… I hope you a very happy spring!
the book is fabulous…but I just found out that why it’s on sale when I bought it. there’s some omitted ingredients when it comes to making a cake, for example: there’s butter to be added to melted chocolate but it wasn’t stated in the method. you have to read carefully when you’re ready to make something!
Comment by Celina — April 15, 2007 @ 6:24 am
I’ve just found your beautiful cakes Eliza – they are so pretty I wish I’d known about them for Easter! I’ll have to keep a note of them for next year
thank you for stopping by, Sophie…
Comment by Sophie — April 25, 2007 @ 9:55 am
oooh, those look so pretty and dainty! love the miniature eggs on top!
Comment by stef — April 27, 2007 @ 8:17 pm
lovely cake! Love the pastel color chocolate eggs. This will be perfect for Easter.
Comment by Mandy — March 17, 2008 @ 7:53 pm
i love you and your amaze a recpie
ann_cohan
Comment by ANN — September 22, 2009 @ 3:33 pm