An excellent mistake

[Voy]

I made a "shaker" fruit cake last night - from a recipe I found in a magazine. Very easy. boil the raisins in water with the shortening and sugar for 20 minutes to plump them. Then add in the flour and baking powder and spices and more fruit and nuts, cool and then bake.

well, not liking raisins much, I bought a pack of the little packets ( you'd put in a lunch box or something) because they added up/ to the right amount.

ooops. turns out they were dipped in yoghurt and then choc... oh well. I wasn't prepared to go out and get more raisins at that point - so used them anyway. Needless to say the choc and yoghurt melted off - carry on !

I have to say that fruit cake in a choc based cake is rather wonderful ! I will do it again on purpose..yummers

[auntieannie]

Isn't it how the best recipes were created anyway?

[lumi]

I'm glad it turned out, boy. I also don't like raisins but for some reason I can eat the ones in the little red boxes!

[rikita]

can you give me the recipe (amounts of ingredients, baking time)? and what exactly is shortening?

[auntieannie]

shortening is more or less equal to margarine. i.e. the fat element of the cake.

[Netsuke]

What fruit is in those little red boxes - raisins or sultanas?

For fruit cake of any kind, never, never, ever use anything but butter. I found a great recipe on the back of a box of mixed fruit years and years ago for boiled fruit cake, and apart from Christmas Cake, it's the best fruit cake recipe ever.

[auntieannie]

I would personally recommend to use butter or oil in their natural state at room temperature as I think margarine and similar are really terrible for your health. But that's my view as a health care professional. people do what they want.