Canadian Maple Fruit Cake ‘Presents’

For the batter

• 160 g  unsalted butter
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp  baking powder
• 3 eggs
• 100 g maple sugar
• 160 g flour, split in half

For the Mix-Ins

• 300 g  dates
• 500 g  mixed candied fruit
• 200 g  candied cherries
• 100 g  chopped pecans
• 60 ml amber maple syrup
• 300 ml dark rum

to make the Fruit Cakes

1. Rinse the candied fruit with water.
2. Then soak the fruits and pecans in rum and maple syrup overnight to remove the stickiness and rehydrate.
3. Mix all the dried fruit in a bowl.
4. Sift half of the flour over the fruit and mix until all the fruit is coated in flour.
5. In a separate bowl, cream together the butter and eggs.
6. Add the lemon juice and beat again.
7. Add maple sugar, flour, and baking powder and beat until creamy and smooth.
8. Add all the fruit and nuts to the batter and combine by hand.
9. Line wax paper into two 10.5”x5” loaf pans and divide the batter among them.
10. Put the cakes in the oven and bake at 150°C for about an hour and a half, or until a toothpick is removed clean.
11. When both cakes are cold, cut each one in 3, and then cut the edges to make 6 nice squares.

To decorate

1. Wrap them with coloured marzipan or icing fondant to create your ‘presents’.