What was a loose and carefree week last week morphed into another round of busy this week with hardly a chance to bake but I did attempt a second ginger fruitcake and had taste testers Friends Marilyn and Jan on our quilty day.
For this one I added more golden raisins and some dried cranberries soaked in rum to equal, once plumped, 2 cups. I used just a quarter cup of grated ginger and a quarter cup of ginger paste, which I didn't know existed but found at the grocery store and decided upon tasting it, I didn't like it because it's too mild. The rum added to the cake equaled about 3/4 cup and then added 1/4 cup orange juice. More walnuts and pecans, too. Since I didn't measure the candied orange and lemon peel last time, I didn't measure it this time, either. Just added "some." Remember, this is a basic moist gingerbread cake recipe that I'm adding all of these extra ingredients to. That first cake that I made the week before? I still have two pieces sitting on the counter and it just gets better and better.
Verdict from my taste testers? They liked this one better because the ginger taste wasn't so slap your tongue strong. This one was milder all around. For that reason alone I liked the first cake better because I DO like the stronger flavor you get from fresh grated ginger. I like flavor. Like I always tell the people at the Cheese Lady store, if you can't taste it, why eat it?
I also did finish the tops for two of the grand girls and need to find a piece of fabric for contrast for one of the others and hope to do that soon.
that cake looks delicous!
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