Fruit cake

I have been asked to publish this recipe as it is really lovely for wedding and christening cakes because it is not too heavy, and very good for afternoon tea and seems popular with the caravaners and ramblers.
It is a recipe from the Lake District. When the trade routes first opened the wool from the area was shipped all over the world. The ships bought back spices and sugar. One of the first spices to get to this country was pepper, and was used in all sorts of recipes, and although we now use it mainly for savoury dishes it does go extrordinarily well with fruit.

Westmoorland Pepper Cake

300ml water
125g demarara sugar
425g mixed dried fruit
75g glacee cherries- preferably natural
125g butter
pinch salt (optional, if you use salted butter, you really don't need it)
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300g plain flour
2 heaped teaspoons baking powder
1teaspoon mixed spice
Quarter teaspoon nutmeg
Quarter teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon orange juice
1 egg

Put all of the top set of ingrediants in a pan. Bring to the boil- be careful at the beginning so the sugar doesn't catch the bottom. Turn the heat down to simmer, and cook for 20-30 minutes. The fruit will all plump up and your kitchen will smell of Christmas!
Let the fruit and juice cool while you weigh out the rest and line a 10inch tin. Put all the bottom set of ingrediants in a large bowl. When the fruit is cool- blood tempreture will be fine, add it to the large bowl and stir well.
Pour into a lined tin and cook at 325F for about 2 hours. If it looks like it is getting too brown on the top, cover the tin with foil, greaseproof paper or newspaper.
To check if it is cooked insert in the middle of the cake a skewer, or a kebab stick. If it comes out gooey then it is still raw. If it's clean, then it's done.
Tips
~Rather than just using normal dried fruit, add some chopped dates, figs, apricots etc. I add the amount of fruit and cherries up together, then make that amount up with a good mixture.
~You can also add nuts- walnuts go really well. Take out some fruit and replace the amount with nuts. Don't boil them though as it's good to have a bit of crunch and texture. You can decorate the top with pecans or walnuts, just before you cook the cake. We do this so our customers know it contains nuts.
~To get the shiny finish you see on television fruit cake, heat some apricot jam, add a little hot water and brush it over the top of the warm cake.
~The cake can be frozen, and it keeps well- as do most fruit cakes, in a sealed container.