Grandma Leone's Fruit Cake
A classic fruit cake filled with raisins, nuts, and candied fruits, perfect for family gatherings and holiday celebrations.
Ingredients
Main Ingredients
- 3 cups water
- 1.5 cups raisins
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
- 1.5 tablespoons baking powder
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 0.5 teaspoon salt
- 1 pound pecan halves
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (for coating pecans)
- 2 cups white sugar
- 1.5 cups canola oil
- 4 large eggs (beaten)
- 3 cups candied fruit
Instructions
Preparation
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease two 8x8 inch baking pans.
- In a saucepan, bring the water and raisins to a boil. Cook until the raisins are plump, about 2 minutes. Drain the raisins and let them cool, but save the raisin water.
- In a mixing bowl, combine 3 cups of flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- In a resealable plastic bag, combine the pecans and 2 tablespoons of flour. Shake until the pecans are coated, then pour into a colander to shake off any extra flour.
- In another bowl, whisk together sugar, oil, eggs, and cooled raisin water. Gently fold in the candied fruit.
- Gradually add the flour mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, to the sugar mixture until combined. Finally, fold in the raisins and pecans.
- Fill the prepared baking pans a little more than halfway full with batter.
Baking
- Bake in the preheated oven for 40 minutes. Then lower the temperature to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C) and bake for about 1 more hour, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
Serving
- Let the cake cool down after baking. Serve plain or dust with powdered sugar. Great with a cup of tea or coffee!
Notes
Ensure the raisins are fully cooled before mixing them into the batter. Don’t overmix to maintain a light texture. You can adjust the amount of candied fruit to suit your taste. Feel free to add your favorite nuts or dried fruits.