I’m not a fruit cake lover, but Mum’s Pumpkin Fruit Cake is an exception. It’s a light cake, easy on the palate and one that I go back for seconds and thirds. Also, I’m not a fan of sultanas by themselves, but in this cake it adds a light sweetness which adds to the cake’s moistness. Mum uses homegrown organic pumpkins and eggs which adds to the rich yellowness.

It’s easy to slice and just as delicious when pulled out of the freezer and defrosted overnight. It is a great emergency cake in the freezer for morning teas, school lunch boxes etc.,

Ingredients

• 1 cup raw sugar (or castor sugar)
• 250g butter
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup cold cooked, mashed pumpkin
• 375g sultana (or mixed fruit)
• 2 cups SR flour
• ½ teaspoon vanilla essence

Method

1. Beat sugar and butter, until creamy
2. Add eggs and mix
3. Add pumpkin and mix
4. Add sultana and mix
5. Add vanilla essence and mix
6. Fold in SR flour with wooden spoon or whisk
7. Pour ¾ into 3 bar cakes (lined with baking paper)
8. Cook 3/4 hr for 150C in oven (It will cook evenly and not crack)
9. Check with skewer, if clean, remove from oven, otherwise it will keep cooking and dry out.
10. Leave 5min in tin on bench, while cooling slightly.
11. Then pull out using baking paper and place on cake racks to cool
12. Cover with tea-towel to keep moist inside.

Hints

• Use mixture in patty cakes/muffin tray, instead of bar cake. Patty cakes will cook quicker approx. 20min at 150C instead of 3/4 hr.
• 180C cooks too fast because it’s a heavy cake, but it depends on oven.
• Freeze extra cakes.