3/4 c Butter
2 c Brown sugar
4 Eggs
2 1/2 c All-purpose flour
1 c Walnuts; chopped
3 c Candied fruit
2 c Dates; chopped
1 tb Orange juice
1 ts Orange rind; grated
1/2 ts Orange extract
1 ts Baking powder
1 ts Baking soda
1 ts Salt
1/4 ts Ground nutmeg
1/4 ts Ground cloves
1 ts Ground cinnamon
1 1/2 c Mashed bananas
Recipe by: Rose Murray, The Christmas Cookbook Great Canadian Prepare
two 2 Litre (9″ x 5″) loaf pans. Preheat oven to 300 F. In a large
bowl combine the fruit, dates, pineapple and walnuts. Dredge them
with 1/4 cup of the flour. Sift the remaining flour together with
the baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves.
Set aside. Cream the butter, add the sugar and beat until the mixture
is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Beat in the
orange rind, orange juice and orange extract. Mash the bananas with a
fork. (A food processor will tend to liquefy the bananas and this
will change the texture of the cake.) Alternately stir the bananas
and the flour mixture into the creamed mixture. Stir in the floured
fruit and nuts. Turn into the prepared pans and bake for 2 hours and
15 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle of each cake
comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 20 minutes, then turn out onto
racks. Yields about 5 pounds of cake.
Yields
12 Servings