Classic Fruit Cake with Rum & Dark Chocolate

Serves: 10

Ingredients:
½ cup chopped pitted prunes
½ cup chopped dried figs
½ cup chopped pitted dates
½ cup chopped dried apricots
½ cup raisins
1/3 cup diced candied citrus peel
¾ cup pecan pieces
3 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/3 cup amber rum, plus extra (2-3 oz) for brushing cake
2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 ½ Tbsp baking powder
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup sugar
2 Tbsp honey
1 cup milk
2 eggs, separated
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Stir the prunes, figs, dates, apricots, raisins, citrus peel, pecans and chocolate with the rum, cover and let sit for an hour.

2. Preheat the oven to 325 °F and grease an 8-cup Bundt pan.

3. Sift the flour, baking powder, cloves and salt and stir this into the fruit. Whisk the sugar, honey, milk and egg yolks together and then stir this into the fruit mixture. Whip the egg whites until they hold a medium peak when the beaters are lifted and fold this into the cake batter in 2 additions (the whites will deflate somewhat, but that is normal).

4. Bake the cake for about an hour, until a tester inserted in the centre of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake for 20 minutes in the pan, then turn it out to cool completely.

5. While still warm, brush the surface of the cake with rum then once cooled, brush the cake again with rum. Wrap and store the cake for 5 days before slicing.

The fruitcake will keep well-wrapped for up to 2 weeks, or can be frozen for up to 3 months.