Rum Cake

Cake
1 cup chopped nuts
1 (18.25 ounce) box yellow cake mix
1 small box vanilla instant pudding
4 eggs
1/2 cup cold water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup rum

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour a Bundt pan. Sprinkle nuts over the bottom of the pan. Pour batter over the nuts. Bake for 1 hour. Cool. Invert onto a platter. Prick the top. Spoon and brush glaze over top and sides. Allow to absorb.

Glaze
1/4 pound butter
1/4 cup water
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup rum

Melt butter. Stir in water and sugar. Boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat and stir in rum.

Peppermint Pound Cake

3 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter or margarine (not low fat)
6 eggs
Pinch of salt
3 cups flour
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Peppermint candy sticks

Blend sugar and butter together well. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring well after each one, then add salt. Add flour and milk alternately, ending with flour. Add vanilla extract.

Spray tube pan with vegetable spray, then coat the pan with a little flour. Divide dough into three separate parts. To one of the thirds, add half of a large stick of peppermint candy, crushed. Place one of the plain thirds in the tube pan, add the third with the crushed peppermint and, finally, the last third of plain dough. Bake for 1 hour, 20 minutes at 350 degrees F. Let cool, then ice with white icing. Coat top and sides with the remainder of the crushed candy

Serves 16 to 20.

Peppermint Frosting

1/4 cup crushed peppermint stick candy
1/2 cup milk
About 1 pound confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Heat candy and milk over hot water in a double boiler until candy is melted. Add enough confectioners’ sugar to make frosting thick enough to spread on cake.

Christmas Pound Cake

1 pound butter or margarine
1 pound granulated sugar
1 pound flour (4 cups all-purpose or 4 1/2 cups cake flour)
2 cups white raisins
1 pound pecans, coarsely chopped
1/2 to 1 cup candied cherries
1/2 to 1 cup candied pineapple
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons lemon extract (2 ounce bottle)
6 eggs

Cream butter, sugar and lemon extract. Sift flour once, then measure. Sift twice more, adding baking powder and salt to last sift. Add eggs, one at a time, to creamed mixture, alternating with flour, beating well after each addition. This makes a very stiff batter so will probably have to be beaten by hand. Then add nuts, raisins and candied fruits which have been coated with a little of the flour. Bake in a large round tube pan which has been lined with brown paper and greased. Bake at 300 degrees F for 2 hours, or until done when tested.

Christmas Pineapple Cake

1 cup butter or margarine
2 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 (6 ounce) bottle maraschino cherries
1 (20 ounce) can pineapple chunks, packed in juice
4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

With electric mixer, blend butter and sugar. Add eggs. Ad liquid from cherries and pineapple, and reserve fruit.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cocoa and salt. Stir in raisins and nuts. Cut cherries and pineapple chunks in half and add to flour mixture. Add flour mixture to butter mixture and stir until well combined.

Pour batter into a greased Bundt or tube pan. (A 13 x 9-inch baking pan, 2 regular loaf pans or several smaller loaf pans can be used instead.) Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until a wooden pick inserted in cake comes out clean.

Serve with whipped cream, if desired.

Makes 16 servings.

Liqueur Pound Cakes

Pound Cake
1 1/2 cups butter (at room temperature)
    DO NOT USE MARGARINE
1 pound confectioners’ sugar, sifted
6 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 3/4 cups Soft As Silk cake flour

In a large bowl, use an electric mixer to beat butter until creamy. Gradually add sifted confectioners’ sugar to butter, beating until mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add vanilla extract. Gradually mix cake flour into creamed mixture.

Prepare 4 loaf pans, each about 3 1/2 by 7 inches. Butter each loaf pan, then dust lightly with flour. Scrape batter mixture evenly into pans. Smooth the top surfaces. Bake at 300 degrees F for 50 minutes, until wooden pick comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes.

Turn cake out and immediately return cake to pan.  With a slender wooden skewer, wooden pick or fork, poke 1 inch deep holes, about 1/2 inch apart, all over the top of cakes. Immediately pour an equal amount of syrup over each cake. It will soak in. Let cool on rack for 30 minutes. Remove from pan and serve, or wrap securely and store in a cool area. Can store for up to 1 month in the refrigerator or 6 months in the freezer. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Liqueur Syrup
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
3/4 cup water
1 1/4 cups Amaretto (rum, almond, hazelnut
    or orange-flavored liqueur)

In a 2- or 3-quart saucepan, combine sugar, light corn syrup and water. Over medium heat stir slowly until mixture simmers. Continue heating without stirring until mixture boils. Cover and boil for 1 minute until sugar dissolves and liquid is clear. If you don’t cover the pan and if you stir while the syrup boils, crunchy sugar crystals will form in the finished cake.  Remove from heat and uncover. Let stand to cool slightly, about 5 minutes.

Stir in the liqueur. Ready to pour into pound cakes or can store (can even be frozen!)

Makes 3 1/2 cups syrup.

Liqueur Cakes

If giving these cakes as gifts, use disposable aluminum foil loaf pans and give the cakes in the pans.

Cakes
8 eggs
2 2/3 cups granulated sugar
3 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup heavy cream
1 vanilla bean or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup melted butter (at room temperature)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour four 8 x 3 3/4-inch loaf pans. Split open vanilla bean and scrape seeds into cream. Drop pod into cream and heat until scalding. Let cool.

Whisk together the eggs, sugar and salt until well blended. Sift the flour and baking powder together. Whisk the sifted dry ingredients into the egg/sugar mixture just until blended. Remove (and discard) the vanilla bean pod from the cream, and whisk cream into the batter. Gently mix in the melted butter, pour batter into the prepared loaf pans and bake for 50 to 60 minutes or until golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean. While cake is baking, prepare Syrup.

Syrup
3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1 1/8 cups water
1 3/4 cups liqueur of choice*

Combine sugar, water and corn syrup in a heavy saucepan. Stir mixture over medium-high heat until it comes to a simmer. Continue to heat WITHOUT FURTHER STIRRING until mixture comes to a full boil. Cover and continue to boil for about 1 minute or until all sugar is dissolved and liquid is clear. Remove from heat and let cool for about 5 minutes. Stir in liqueur.

When you remove cakes from the oven, allow them to cool for about 5 minute. Run a knife around the edges of the pan and turn cakes out of pan. Immediately return cakes to the pan. Use a thin wooden skewer to poke numerous holes into the cakes, about 1 inch apart. The holes should go all the way from the top to the bottom of the cake. Pour 1/4 syrup mixture over each cake and, if desired, sprinkle with toppings*. Let cool until the cakes have absorbed the syrup. Remove from pans.

* Liqueurs and Optional Toppings
Amaretto and 1/3 cup toasted almonds
Grand Marnier and 2 tablespoons grated orange zest
Frangelico and 1/3 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts
Rum and brandy (while not really liqueurs) work well in these cakes, also.