Australian Boiled Fruitcake

Since my fruitcake posting attracted several interesting responses, I did some research. My friend Kat told me that her grandmother made Boiled Fruitcake. This sounded pretty weird, but since Kat is from Australia, where they actually eat Vegemite (LOL), I decided that she was probably serious. :-) And she certainly was! Here's the recipe, and it sounds very, very good to me. I was picturing it being boiled after the flour was already in the mixture, but this is of course not the case. Thanks, Kat..... I'll try it next year!

AUSTRALIAN BOILED FRUIT CAKE

1/2 lb. butter1 1/2 c. brown sugar1 1/2 lb. mixed dried fruit (approx. 4 1/2 c.) : raisins, currants, peaches, etc. I also add maraschino cherries, 1 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. cloves, 1 tsp. nutmeg, 1 c. water, 1/2 c. sherry, more for moistness, 3 beaten eggs, 1 tbsp. orange rind, 2 tbsp. golden syrup, 2 c. self-rising flour, 1 c. plain flour
Mix first 8 ingredients in a saucepan. Bring slowly to a boil, stirring often. Allow to cool. Add eggs, orange rind and syrup. Fold in flour and mix well.
Place in a 9 inch square pan lined with brown paper. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 1/2 hours. This cake is more moist if kept in an airtight container a week or more before serving.

Well, I'm about to venture out to mail a package off to my daughter and son-in-law in Chicago. I'm a little late this year, but some of the items I've ordered for them haven't arrived here yet. I guess I'll just have to accept that some of their gifts will perhaps get to them after Christmas. :-(

Here they are...